Translation IME Not Translating? Troubleshooting Guide
Activation, engine, language pair, cache, reinstall—kept separate from missing-candidate issues.
When Translation IME shows no translated text, switch to it with Win+Space (Ctrl+Space on Mac), then verify the engine is online and the language-pair direction is correct—inactive IME or blocked API calls are the usual causes. If the candidate bar itself is missing or Chinese switching fails, use the candidate-and-switch guide instead.
1 Input method not activated
It appears in the list, but typing only shows normal pinyin candidates with no translated text.
On Windows 11 I almost uninstalled Translation IME after setup: the candidate window looked exactly like Microsoft Pinyin, with zero translations. The IME was installed, but the system was still using Microsoft Pinyin as the active source.
Press Win + Space until the taskbar shows Translation IME. On macOS, use Ctrl + Space or the menu bar input icon. Only after the correct source is active should you expect translated candidates.
If Translation IME is missing from the list entirely, setup likely did not finish. Reinstall from the download page and keep the “Add to system input methods” step enabled. If the candidate bar itself never appears, or Chinese/English switching fails, use the candidate-and-switch article instead of chasing engines here.
2 Translation engine offline or connection failed
The IME is active and candidates appear, but translated text never shows—only the raw input.
On corporate Wi-Fi I saw this once: the firewall blocked the translation API domain. A phone hotspot restored translations immediately, so the IME binary was fine.
Open settings for engine status or a connection test. Offline / connection failed → try another engine, then check firewall and proxy. For offline mode, confirm the language pack finished downloading; on macOS a pack once stalled mid-download until I deleted the partial file and fetched it again.
3 Language pair not supported or misconfigured
The engine shows online, but Chinese input yields garbage—or nothing.
Most often the source/target direction is reversed. You want Chinese in and English out, but settings say English → Chinese, so the engine treats your input as the wrong language.
Open Settings → Language Pair and confirm direction. Some pairs (for example Chinese to Thai) are not covered by every engine; switch to one that lists your combination.
4 Clear translation cache
After weeks of use, results start looking like outdated engine output.
Cache speeds up repeated phrases and can keep serving stale strings after a server-side engine update. Windows: Settings → Cache Management → Clear Translation Cache. macOS has the same idea under Preferences. Clear, then type the same phrase again so the engine refetches.
Clearing cache does not touch the custom dictionary. Export the dictionary only when you plan a full uninstall.
5 Full uninstall and reinstall
Use a clean reinstall only after activation, network, language pair, and cache checks fail.
Windows: Settings → Apps → Uninstall Translation IME → restart → install the current package from the download page. macOS: remove the input source → Trash the app and empty Trash → restart → reinstall.
On Windows 10 I hit one corrupted-file case where no amount of switching restored translations; a clean reinstall fixed it. Export the dictionary first, and keep a system Chinese input source as a fallback.
Continue Checking
FAQ
I installed the Translation IME but it does not appear in my input method list.
Go to System Settings → Language & Input (Windows) or Keyboard Settings (macOS) and add it manually. If it is missing from the list, the installation may not have completed. Re-download from the download page.
The IME only translates part of my text. Why?
This usually means the language pair is partially configured or the translation engine has limited support for that pair. Check your source and target language settings, and try switching engines.
Will clearing the translation cache delete my custom dictionary?
No. Translation cache and custom dictionary are stored separately. Clearing the cache only removes cached translation results. However, if you do a full uninstall, export your dictionary first.
Download the latest version from the download page
If you are ready to install or update, return to the download page and verify the current public version, platform notes, and on-site release information.