Detailed Translation Comparison
Quote by Lao Tzu
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English
Translation 1
41
When the highest type of men hear Tao, The diligently practice it. When the average type of men hear Tao, They half believe in it.
When the lowest type of men hear Tao, They laugh heartily at it. If they did not laugh at it, it would not be Tao.
Therefore there is the established saying: The Tao which is bright appears to be dark. The Tao which goes forward appears to fall backward. The Tao which is level appears uneven. Great virtue appears like a valley (hollow). Great purity appears like disgrace. Far-reaching virtue appears as if insufficient.
Solid virtue appears as if unsteady. True substance appears to be changeable. The great square has no corners. The great implement (or talent) is slow to finish (or mature). Great music sounds faint. Great form has no shape.
Tao is hidden and nameless. Yet it is Tao alone that skillfully provides for all and brings them to perfection.
Characters:
894
Words:
158
Comments:
0
Last updated:
2026-02-13 13:43
Spanish
Translation 2
Tesoro arcano
El hombre superior, que oye el Tao, lo practica con diligencia. Elmediocre, que oye el Tao, lo practica con titubeos y lánguidamente.El hombre bajo se ríe a carcajadas. Si no se riera, argüiríaescasez [o falta] en el Tao mismo.Está el proverbio que dice: entender el Tao es como oscuridad,avanzar en el Tao es como retroceder, llegar a su alteza es como vulgarizarse,la virtud eminente es como un barranco, la suma blancura es como ignominia,la virtud vasta es como insuficiencia, fundar la virtud es como haraganería,la calidad más pura es como adulteración.Cuadrado inmenso, sin ángulos, vaso enorme de tardíarealización, voz inmensa de fino sonido, gran forma incorpórea,el Tao es oscuro e innominado. Su bondad en prestarse lo hace todo.
Characters:
756
Words:
120
Comments:
0
Last updated:
2026-02-13 13:43
Comparison Metrics
Character Difference
-138
chars shorter
Translation 2 vs Translation 1
Word Count Difference
-38
words less
Translation 2 vs Translation 1
Similarity Score
23.8%
Very different approaches
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- Character/Word Difference: Shows how much longer or shorter Translation 2 is compared to Translation 1
- Similarity Score: Measures how similar the two texts are based on character-level comparison (higher = more similar)
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