This guide adapts rules and examples from Microsoft’s 60-page Bengali (India) Localization Style Guide (originally written for software/UI localization). The underlying linguistic rules apply universally — to legal contracts, medical documents, marketing copy, and any Bengali translation work. Restructured and reformatted as a general Bengali translator reference by ChatsControl.

Bengali (Bangla) Translation Style Guide — Voice, Word Choice & Common Pitfalls (Legal, Medical, Marketing, IT)¶

TL;DR¶

• Bengali has no grammatical gender markers on verbs — use gender-neutral terms (নিক্ষোর্থী not ছেলে শিক্ষার্থী/মেয়ে শিক্ষার্থী; ইনিনিয়ার not মনহো ইনিনিয়ার).
• Pronoun মস is used for both he and she; োলক for both him and her — no separate gendered forms.
• Address users with second-person formal আপনি; avoid third-person ব্যব্হারকারী (user) which sounds institutional.
• Use Bengali punctuation: । (Bengali period) replaces Latin period; quotation marks are ” ” or ’ ‘; ellipsis is …
• Avoid masculine-default constructions (পুরুষ ইনিনিয়ার), pitying language (প্রনেব্ন্ধী → নব্লশষভালব্ সক্ষম), and slang loan words; prefer everyday Bengali words.

Register and tone¶

Three principles: warm and relaxed; crisp and clear; ready to lend a hand.

Use clear, friendly, concise language — like everyday conversation rather than formal technical Bengali. Translate intent, not words.

Why this matters: Formal Sanskritized Bengali register damages marketing copy conversion, medical patient material comprehension, software UI friction, and consumer-facing legal text clarity.

Sample voice usage¶

Addressing the user¶

Explanatory text and support¶

Promoting a feature¶

How-to guidelines¶

Inclusive language¶

General guidelines¶

• Comply with local language laws.
• Use plain language.
• Be mindful of politically disputed places.
• Represent diverse perspectives.
• Don’t generalize or stereotype.
• Don’t use profane terms.

Avoid gender bias¶

Avoid compounds with gender-specific terms (পুরুষ, মনহো).

For generalizations, use plural noun forms (মোক, মোকজনি, etc.).

Gender-specific pronouns are not used in Bengali¶

• The pronoun মস is used for he/she
• For him/her, োলক is used for both instances

When writing about a real person, use the pronouns the person prefers — মস(পুং), মস(স্ত্রী), োরা, etc.

Accessibility¶

Focus on people, not disabilities. Don’t use pity words (প্রনেব্ন্ধকো আলছ এমি দুর্দশাগ্রস্ত, মকািও মরালগ আিান্ত).

Keep paragraphs short. Spell out এব্ং (and), সহ (with), সম্পলকব (about). Screen readers misread &, +, ~.

Language-specific standards¶

Abbreviations¶

Formed by taking the first letter (or first syllable) of the word followed by full stop (.) or visarga (ঃ).

Dictionary usage¶

Geographical/directional¶

Administrative/commercial¶

Measurements¶

Storage and bandwidth units¶

These stay in English, not localized:

Acronyms¶

Common acronyms (ANSI, ISO, PDF, IP, GPS, DNS, HTML, RAM, CPU) remain in English.

Adjectives¶

Adjectives follow the noun in Bengali in some contexts; in attributive position they precede. Possessive adjectives are used sparingly — Bengali noun inflection handles much of what English does with “your/my”.

Articles¶

Bengali has no articles. Indefinite reference may use একটি (one/a) for emphasis; definite reference uses inflection.

Capitalization¶

Bengali script has no case. No capitalization rules apply at the orthographic level. Capitalization concepts from English don’t transfer.

Conjunctions¶

Common conjunctions: এব্ং (and), নকন্তু (but), োই (so), যনদ (if), যখি (when), যেক্ষণ (until), যেক্ষণ িা (unless).

Gender¶

No grammatical gender markers on verbs or adjectives. Pronouns are gender-neutral (মস, োলক). Gender is indicated lexically by separate words (মছলে/মেয়ে, পুরুষ/নারী) — use these only when biologically necessary.

Nouns¶

Bengali nouns inflect for case (nominative, accusative, genitive, instrumental, locative) via suffixes. Plurality marked by suffixes like -রা (animate), -গুনে/গুলো (inanimate), -সমূহ (formal).

Pronouns¶

Use second-person formal আপনি for users in software, marketing, medical, legal-consumer contexts.

Punctuation¶

Period (dari, ।)¶

The Bengali full stop । (U+0964) ends sentences. Use one space between sentences.

Other punctuation¶

Comma (,), question mark (?), exclamation (!), colon (:), semicolon (;), quotation marks (” “), ellipsis (…), parentheses (), hyphen (-), em dash (—) — all follow modern English usage.

Verbs¶

Verbs inflect for person, number, tense, and aspect. Use simple present and present perfect for instructions. Imperative form for commands.

Localization considerations¶

Applications, products, and features¶

Product/application names trademarked, rarely translated.

Trademarks¶

Trademarked names and Microsoft Corporation not localized unless local laws require.

Geopolitical concerns¶

Maps, flags, country names, art, cultural content — verify currency and political acceptability.

Software considerations¶

Error messages¶

Follow voice principles. Natural, empathetic, not robot-like.

Keys¶

Most key names (Alt, Ctrl, Shift, Tab, Enter, Esc, Delete, Backspace) kept in English. Arrow keys may be translated.

FAQ¶

How is gender handled in Bengali translation?¶

Bengali has no gendered pronouns — মস is used for both “he” and “she”; োলক for both “him” and “her”. Avoid gender-specific compounds (পুরুষ ইনিনিয়ার, মনহো ব্স) — use gender-neutral terms (ইনিনিয়ার, ব্স) without gender modifier. For “student”, use নশক্ষােী (not মছলে নশক্ষােী/মেয়ে নশক্ষােী). When writing about a real person, use the pronouns the person prefers.

How should I address users in Bengali?¶

Use second-person formal আপনি (you, polite). Avoid third-person ব্যব্হারকারী (user) — sounds institutional and impersonal. Avoid the familiar তুমি unless the context is explicitly informal (children’s content, casual chat apps). Direct, second-person addressing is the modern voice across software, marketing, medical, and consumer-facing legal text.

What punctuation rules are Bengali-specific?¶

। (Bengali period/dari, U+0964) ends a sentence — replaces Latin period. Comma (,) follows English usage. Quotation marks: ” ” or ’ ‘. Ellipsis is single character …, used to indicate omission, pause, or unfinished thought. Question mark (?) and exclamation (!) follow English. No space before punctuation.

How are abbreviations formed in Bengali?¶

By taking the first letter (or first syllable) of the word followed by a full stop. Common forms: নব্. (নব্লশষয/noun), নব্ণ (নব্লশষণ/adjective), নি-নব্ণ. (নিয়ানব্লশষণ/adverb), সব্ব. (সব্বিাম/pronoun), ডা (ডািার/Doctor), ইনি (ইনিনিয়ার/engineer), মস (মসেনসয়াস/Celsius), নকনম (নকলোনমটার/kilometer), মকনর্ (নকলোগ্রাম/kilogram).

Should I localize storage and measurement units?¶

Storage units stay in English: GB (not নগগাব্াইট), KB (not নকলোব্াইট), Kb (not নকলোনবট), MB (not মমগাব্াইট), Mb (not মমগানবট), bit/s (not নবট প্রনে মসলকন্ড). Distance/weight units may be localized: নকনম, মসনম, মকনর্, গ্রা, মস (for Celsius).

Which Bengali acronyms are unlocalized?¶

Commonly understood international acronyms remain in English: ANSI, ISO, PDF, IP, GPS. CPU, OS, RAM, DNS, HTML keep English form. Microsoft product names (Windows, Office, Excel) are not localized.

How should I handle “click” vs “select” in Bengali?¶

For accessibility, prefer Select (নিব্বাচি করুি) over Click (নক্লক করুি). “Select” applies to all input methods (touch, voice, keyboard, mouse); “Click” implies mouse only. Critical for accessible medical software and inclusive consumer products.

Sources¶

• Microsoft Localization Style Guides hub
• Microsoft Terminology — Globalization