Use cases · Language learners
Learn languages with manga and RuneManga
Use RuneManga to read comics in the language you are learning, or check the original against a translation, line by line, as you read.
RuneManga can help you learn a language with comics in two ways: translate a series you already know into the language you are learning, or read a page in the original and switch to the translation to check what a line means. Either way you keep the same page and the same bubbles, so you can compare the two versions side by side.
Machine translation makes mistakes. Use it to check meaning and pick up words, and use a dictionary or a teacher for grammar you want to be sure of.
What works well
- Reading a favorite series in the language you are learning: Translate into lists 89 languages, such as Spanish, French, German, Turkish and Indonesian.
- Checking a Japanese, Korean or Chinese page against a translation: compare Original and Result for each page in the WebApp.
- Switching back and forth while you read in the extension: Original in a page's bar shows the source, and pressing and holding a translated page shows it while you hold.
- Short, everyday dialogue, which is the kind of language a comic is full of.
What does not work yet
- There is no word lookup, reading aid or romanization: the result is a translated page, not a lesson.
- Furigana is not kept in the result, because the whole bubble is replaced with the translation.
- Text outside bubbles and sound effects stay in the original language.
- Each line is translated on its own, so a word can be rendered differently on another page.
Where you read
- Pages you own as files, a folder or a ZIP: use the WebApp and keep the original and the result together.
- Comics on a site that shows ordinary images: the browser extension translates them in place, in Chrome, Edge, Opera, Brave and other Chromium browsers on a computer.
- On a phone: use the WebApp in the browser.
Recommended settings
- Learning the language of the comic: set Translate into to a language you read well, then read the original first and check the translation after.
- Learning another language: set Translate into to the language you are learning and pick a series you already know, so the story helps you guess new words. Japanese, Korean and Chinese are not in Translate into yet.
- Pick series with simple, modern dialogue. Slang-heavy and historical stories are harder for you and for machine translation.
- Use large, clean pages, so that the text is read correctly before it is translated.
Questions
Can I learn Japanese by reading manga with RuneManga?
It can help with vocabulary and reading practice: read the Japanese page, then compare the translation. It does not teach grammar or show readings, so pair it with a course or a dictionary.
Can I translate an English comic into the language I am learning?
Yes. English is one of the languages RuneManga reads, and Translate into lists 89 languages.