Clipboard Mode

Clipboard Mode lets you translate or proofread segments using any web-based AI – ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, DeepSeek, or any other LLM with a chat interface – without needing an API key. Instead of sending segments to an AI provider via API, Supervertaler builds a ready-to-use prompt and copies it to your clipboard. You paste it into the AI of your choice, copy the response, and paste it back.

Tip

No API key? No problem. Clipboard Mode is the fastest way to start using AI translation in Supervertaler for Trados. If you already have access to a web-based AI chat – and most people do these days – you can start translating immediately after installing the plugin. No API keys, no provider configuration, no per-token billing. Just tick Clipboard Mode, copy, paste, and translate.

Clipboard Mode is also ideal if you want to use a model that is not available via API, if you prefer a pay-as-you-go chat subscription, or if you want to try different AI models before committing to a specific provider’s API.

How It Works

Clipboard Mode is available in both Translate and Proofread modes on the Batch Operations tab.

Translating with Clipboard Mode

1. Open the Supervertaler Assistant panel and switch to the Batch Operations tab
2. Set the mode to Translate
3. Tick the Clipboard Mode checkbox
4. Choose a scope (Empty Segments Only, All Segments, etc.)
5. Optionally select a prompt to customise the translation instructions
6. Click Copy to Clipboard
7. Open your preferred web-based AI (ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, etc.)
8. Paste the prompt into the chat and send it
9. Copy the AI’s full response
10. Switch back to Trados and click Paste from Clipboard

The translations are written into the target segments automatically, with full tag reconstruction and validation.

Proofreading with Clipboard Mode

1. Set the mode to Proofread and tick Clipboard Mode
2. Click Copy to Clipboard – the prompt includes both source and target text for each segment
3. Paste into your AI, copy the response, and click Paste from Clipboard

What Gets Copied

When you click Copy to Clipboard, Supervertaler builds a comprehensive prompt that includes:

• System instructions – the same translation or proofreading instructions used by the API-based batch modes
• Custom prompt – your selected prompt from the Prompt Manager, if any
• Terminology – terms from your enabled termbases, including definitions and domains (when term metadata is enabled in AI Settings)
• Document context – source segments from the document (when enabled in AI Settings), so the AI understands the document type and domain
• Translation memory matches – the closest match from the project’s TMs for each segment that has one, as a reference for the AI to check, with the source sentence it was made for (from v18/19.20.198); see Translation memory matches below
• Numbered bilingual segments – each segment is numbered and formatted with status annotations

This is not just a list of segments – it is a fully self-contained prompt ready to paste into any LLM chat window.

Segment Format

Each segment is formatted as a numbered bilingual block:

Segment 1 [new]:
Dutch: Polyvision breidt de mogelijkheden uit.
English:

Segment 2 [fuzzy, 85%]:
Dutch: Nieuwe toepassingen in onderwijs.
English: New applications in education.

Segment 3 [translated, 100%]:
Dutch: Doelstelling lange termijn.
English: Long-term objective.

The per-segment labels use short language names (e.g. “Dutch”, “English”) to save tokens. The full language names with regional variants (e.g. “Dutch (Netherlands)”, “English (United Kingdom)”) are stated once in the system prompt at the top.

Status Annotations

Each segment header includes a status annotation in square brackets:

Status	Meaning
[new]	No target text – needs translation
[fuzzy, N%]	TM fuzzy match at N% – may need revision
[translated, 100%]	100% TM match – likely correct
[translated]	Human-edited translation
[machine translated]	Machine translation output
[draft]	Has target text but origin is unclear

These annotations help the AI understand the state of each segment and respond appropriately – for example, a fuzzy match may only need minor adjustments rather than a full retranslation.

Translation memory matches

(From v18/19.20.198.) When Send TM matches to the AI is ticked on the Batch Operations tab, Copy to Clipboard first searches the project’s translation memories for every segment in scope – the same search ▶ Translate runs – and lists the matches in a block ahead of the segments:

**TRANSLATION MEMORY MATCHES – REFERENCE ONLY**

These are earlier translations of similar sentences, found in the project's translation memory. A memory can hold translations made for other documents, products or clients, and they can be wrong, even at 100% … Where a match does not fit, or you are in doubt, translate from the source. …

Segment 2 – 85% match
  this segment:          Nieuwe toepassingen in onderwijs.
  source in memory:      Nieuwe toepassingen in het onderwijs.
  translation in memory: New applications in education.

A match always comes with the source sentence it was made for, so the AI can compare the two. It is a reference, not wording to follow: the AI reuses a match only where it is correct for the segment in this document, lets the termbase and the document take precedence, and translates from the source when in doubt. Only matches at or above Lowest TM match to send in AI Settings are included – 70% by default. It works on empty segments too, which is where it helps most: a [new] segment can still have a close match in the memory.

The segments are listed below the block exactly as before, and Paste from Clipboard reads the reply the same way. The search runs in the background: the progress bar moves while it does, and the log says how many segments got a match. 👁 Preview prompt shows the same block. Untick Send TM matches to the AI for a job whose memory you do not trust.

Note

Before v18/19.20.198, Copy to Clipboard did not search the memory. The only matches in the clipboard text were those Trados had already put into a segment – shown as [fuzzy, N%], with the match on the target line – so the file had to be pre-translated first (Batch Tasks → Pre-translate Files), or each segment opened in the editor. On those versions, use the All unfinished segments or Filtered segments scope after pre-translating: Empty segments only skips segments that hold a match.

Tag Handling

Inline tags (bold, italic, hyperlinks, field codes, etc.) are serialised as numbered placeholders before being sent to the AI:

Tag type	Placeholder
Opening tag	<t1>, <t2>, etc.
Closing tag	</t1>, </t2>, etc.
Self-closing tag	<t1/>, <t2/>, etc.

For example, a segment like “Click here for details” becomes:

Click <t1>here</t1> for details

The AI is instructed to preserve these placeholders exactly as they appear. When you paste the response back, Supervertaler reconstructs the original Trados tags from the placeholders – the same tag reconstruction pipeline used by API-based Batch Translate.

Caution

If a tag is missing or malformed in the AI’s response, Supervertaler reports a warning but still writes the translation. Check the log for any tag validation messages.

What is checked when you paste

(From v18/19.20.198.) The copied instructions tell the AI to return each translation and nothing else, with one exception: where something must be brought to your attention – a defect in the source, a real ambiguity – it may end that segment’s translation with a single [[TC: …]] marker, 5 to 20 words written as your comment to the client.

When you click Paste from Clipboard, each translation is checked the way an API run checks it (see What the AI may send back). A translation that carries more than that – a note after it, the model explaining its own choices, markdown or a line break the source does not have – is not imported: its segment is left as it was, and the log names it by the number the AI chat shows, with the reason. Nobody can be asked again from here, so ask the AI for those segments again, or translate them by hand. The summary line counts them as not imported.

A [[TC: …]] marker is kept at the end of the target, or added as a Trados comment if you have ticked Add the AI’s [[TC: …]] notes as Trados comments in AI Settings.

Choosing an AI Model

Any web-based LLM with a chat interface works with Clipboard Mode. Some recommendations:

• Claude (claude.ai) – excellent at following the bilingual format precisely and preserving tags
• ChatGPT (chatgpt.com) – widely available, works well with the structured format
• Gemini (gemini.google.com) – large context window, good for bigger batches
• DeepSeek (chat.deepseek.com) – strong multilingual capabilities

For best results, use the most capable model available in your subscription (e.g., Claude Opus, GPT-4o, Gemini Pro).

Note

Most web-based AI chat interfaces have a context limit that determines how many segments you can process at once. If you have a large number of segments, consider using a smaller scope (e.g., Filtered Segments) or processing in multiple rounds.

Clipboard Mode vs API Mode

	Clipboard Mode	API Mode
API key required	No	Yes
Setup time	None – works immediately	Requires provider account and API key
Cost	Included in your AI chat subscription	Pay-per-token via API
Automation	Manual copy/paste	Fully automatic
Model choice	Any web-based LLM	OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, Ollama
Best for	Getting started, quick jobs, trying new models	Large projects, automation, batch processing

Both modes use the same prompts, terminology, document context, and tag handling – the only difference is how the text gets to and from the AI.

Note

Many users start with Clipboard Mode to explore AI translation with zero setup, then move to API Mode later for larger projects where full automation is more efficient. The two modes complement each other – you can switch between them at any time by ticking or unticking the Clipboard Mode checkbox.

Combining with AutoPrompt – the hybrid pattern

AutoPrompt always uses your configured AI provider to generate the meta-prompt – Clipboard Mode does not apply to AutoPrompt, only to the actual Translate / Proofread passes. This is intentional, and it enables a useful hybrid workflow:

1. Tick Clipboard Mode.
2. Click AutoPrompt… – the prompt-generation request still goes through your configured API (a small, one-shot call, even on an Opus-class model this is cheap relative to bulk translation).
3. Refine the generated prompt in the AI Assistant chat and Save as Prompt….
4. Select the saved prompt from the dropdown.
5. Click Copy to Clipboard – Supervertaler builds a ready-to-paste batch for your web-based AI using the AutoPrompt-generated system prompt.
6. Paste into ChatGPT / Claude.ai / Gemini, copy the response, click Paste from Clipboard.

The result: paid API for the small-but-clever prompt-writing call, free web tier for the expensive bulk translation. You get the full AutoPrompt analysis pipeline (TermScan, domain detection, sampling of confirmed reference pairs) without paying per-token API rates for the bulk Translate.

Note

If you want to run AutoPrompt without using any API key – for example before you have signed up for a provider – you’ll need to use API Mode-only features (the in-app Chat panel) at least once for the prompt-generation step. There is currently no clipboard-only AutoPrompt path; AutoPrompt always sends the meta-prompt request to a configured provider.

Tips

Use the Best Model Available

Since you are not paying per token in Clipboard Mode, there is no cost difference between models. Use the most capable model your subscription offers.

Check the Response Format

Before clicking Paste from Clipboard, glance at the AI’s response to make sure it followed the numbered bilingual format. Most modern LLMs handle this correctly, but if the format is off, you can ask the AI to reformat its response. Segments the paste leaves out because their translation carried a note are named in the log; see What is checked when you paste.

Combine with Terminology

Clipboard Mode includes your termbase terms in the prompt, just like API mode. Make sure your termbases are set up and enabled in AI Settings for the best results.

Name Prompts After Your Projects

If you save a custom prompt with the same name as your Trados project (e.g. “HAYNESPRO” for a project called HAYNESPRO), the prompt dropdown will auto-select it whenever you open that project. This works for both Translate and Proofread modes and saves you from having to reselect the correct prompt each time.

Process in Batches

For large documents, use the scope dropdown to work through segments in manageable batches – for example, use display filters to select a section at a time, then use the Filtered Segments scope.

---

See Also

• Batch Translate
• AI Proofreader
• Batch Operations
• AI Settings
• Prompts