Watching talks with subtitles

Last updated: Oct 04, 2017 02:10PM EDT
Most TED Talks have subtitles. Once a talk has been published to TED.com, volunteer translators from around the world work to translate subtitles into different languages. If a talk doesn’t have subtitles for a particular language, it’s because it hasn’t been translated yet. If you’d like a particular translation for a talk, let us know or consider volunteering!

Subtitles are currently supported on the following platforms
  • Desktop and mobile web browsers
    (Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Opera, Edge)
  • Android and iOS TED apps
  • Apple TV
  • Roku
For best results, make sure you have the latest version of the browser or app. Note that TED.com subtitles will not work with Internet Explorer.

This article covers how to get subtitles for Turning subtitles on using a computer browser
  1. Activate subtitles from any talk page by clicking the talk bubble near the talk title.

  2. A menu will pop up, allowing you to select the language of your choice. If your language is not in the list, the talk still needs to be translated by TED Translations volunteers.

  3. After selecting a language, the talk will begin to play with subtitles.
Turning subtitles on using a phone/tablet browser
  1. ​Start by pressing the play button

  2. Once the talk starts playing, click the full-screen button

  3. In full-screen, click the message bubble that appears in the bottom right-hand corner

  4. From the pop-up menu, select the language of your choice. If your language is not in the list, the talk still needs to be translated by TED Translations volunteers.

  5. After selecting a language, the talk will begin to play with subtitles.
Turning subtitles on using an app
  1. From a talk page, press play on the video.

    Android


    iOS

     
  2. Once the talk starts playing, tap the talk bubble. A pop-up window with a list of available languages will appear. If your language is not in the list, the talk still needs to be translated by TED Translations volunteers.

    Android


    iOS

     
  3. After selecting a language, the talk will begin to play with subtitles.
Finding all talks available for a language

To find all talks available for a language, go to the talk browsing page and use the “Languages” filter. All talks with subtitles in the chosen language will be displayed in the results.

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