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Reading Research PDFs in a Foreign Language

Skim, deep-read, translate, and jump to Wikipedia without leaving your flow — a guide for academic PDFs.

Research runs on PDFs. Waiting for a full book translation slows you down; reading the original with the right assistant speeds expertise.

Two-pass reading

  1. Skim abstract, figures, conclusion
  2. Deep-read hard sentences — translate, then Google/Wikipedia if needed

Rules of thumb

  • Don’t translate every unknown word
  • Save terms that unlock the argument
  • Capture diagrams as region screenshots

NarratorPDF’s selection popover combines translation, Google, and Wikipedia so research stays in-page.

Start with the sample book.

Open your PDF and start reading

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