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Glite Dictionary
hard subtitle

hard subtitle

4.1
Text always shown on the screen that cannot be turned off
  • noun
  • Specialized
translation icon : subtítulo incrustado
  • The old DVD release only included hard subtitles, so you can't turn them off.

Examples

  • He prefers watching anime with hard subtitles because they're always visible regardless of the media player.

  • The film had a hard subtitle that couldn't be removed.

  • Hard subtitles make it difficult to remove or edit the translated text from the video.

  • Many viewers prefer hard subtitles for accessibility.

  • Hard subtitles are often used in movies so that everyone can read the translated text at all times.

  • She enjoys documentaries with hard subtitles since they help her understand the content better.

  • The streaming service offers films in various languages, but some have hard subtitles that can't be switched off.

Synonyms

hardsub
vshard subtitle
  • Specialized
9.1

A subtitle permanently shown in the video image that you cannot turn off

is the same meaning but written as two separate words

Surface Forms

hard subtitle singular
hard subtitles plural

Morphology

hard + subtitle

The noun 'subtitle' gives the general domain and 'hard' can be interpreted metaphorically as fixed or non-removable, so a learner who knows both words could plausibly infer that it means a permanently embedded subtitle. However, using 'hard' in this technical sense (contrast with 'soft'/'softcoded' subtitles) is specialized and not an obvious, general meaning of 'hard' for a B1 learner without exposure, so the relation is only partially predictable.

Etymology

Hard subtitle comes from the idea of the words being hard into the video image, as if they were 'burned in' and cannot be removed. That's why a hard subtitle means a subtitle that is permanently part of the video and 'cannot be turned off'.