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Abstract：Meaning in the use is an important theory given by Ludwig Wittgenstein，a pioneer in Linguistic Philosophy.The theory is of great similarity with functional equivalence in translation studies.Based on this similarity，this article mainly discusses the influence on translation studies exerted by Wittgenstein’s meaning in the use.
Key words：meaning in use；translation；language philosophy；atmosphere
1 Theoretical Framework
In Wittgenstein’s Philosophical Investigations，he put forward his world-known theory——meaning in the use.He thought the meaning of a word lies in where its grammatical occupation resides.Any change in the grammatical order would inevitably influence the objective of the whole sentence，or even formulate a false sentence.By doing so，the meaning of a word or a sentence is prevented to be equivalent with reference.Meaning doesn’t equal to reference，and we can’t term a word has reference when it has a meaning.Besides，the meaning of a word is of the possibility to change under different circumstances.When we try to interpret a word，we are actually defining its usage.When different words have the same usage，or they function similarly in a sentence，we can say that these words have the same meaning.Before the theory of meaning in the use was put forward，people tend to take the reference of a word，mostly an object of physical presence，as its meaning.But in our daily communication，we frequently acquainted with words which do not have reference，such as dragon and phoenix.Under such a circumstance，we must figure out what the word is mean to signify，or work out what is loaded within these words，otherwise we would surely fail to understand its intention as we can never identify its reference on earth.In conclusion，the meaning of a word is determined by the atmosphere in which words function and its usage.By the word “atmosphere”，the author means the special circumstance in which the sentence was uttered，and mostly it was based on the shared knowledge between the speaker and the listener.
2 Meaning in the use and translation
Translation is actually the activity to express the meaning of a cultural chunk from a language with that of another language of the same meaning.Therefore，meaning is the core of translation.At the same time，meaning also plays a significant part in Wittgenstein’s philosophical ideas.That’s why the writer decided to make a combination of translation studies and philosophical theory.However，attention must be paid that meaning，being determined by atmosphere and usage，is not constant. 2.1 Atmosphere and Translation
Atmosphere，namely the environment in which the word functions，is of great importance in the determination of meaning and its translation.According to Wittgenstein，when we try to translate a preposition，we must make it significant，thought-bearing and alive.That means we are expected to install something beyond material existence into the lifeless linguistic symbol.But at first，we should make sure the translator have a clear and correct understanding of what the sentence is mainly about.As Wittgenstein said，there is indeed some psychological process that is connected with the operation of language，and it is this mental process that enables language to play its part.Therefore，the task of a translator is to recur this process in readers’ mind.The translator is expected to rewrite the same picture for readers，which requires him to correctly understand both the intention and meaning of a sentence in a given atmosphere.The word atmosphere actually has great similarity with context.But it differs from context in that atmosphere not only refers to the pragmatic environment，but also refers to the memory incurred by the word in the speaker’s mind.That is related to the speaker’s psychological state and his life experience.For example，we suppose John raised a docile tiger and he had a good relationship with it.When he came across a pet dog，he might say “that dog is just like a tiger！”in this situation，“like a tiger”doesn’t mean being fierce and cruel，but something cute and meek.In other words，the word“tiger”has been installed with the atmosphere of friendliness by the speaker.If the translator fails to understand its deeper meaning，he might cause translation failure.Therefore，the experience and psychological state of the speaker must be given enough attention.
2.2 The Usage of Words and Translation
The usage of words also plays an important part in translation.That is the core of Wittgenstein’s meaning in the use theory.According to Wittgenstein，when it comes to noun，people tend to identify its reference in the physical world.However，the truth is that not all the nouns have their reference.It is not necessary to confine one’s energy into defining the concrete reference in the physical world.On the contrary，the meaning of a word lies in its usage.In other words，if two words are capable of being used in the same situation and incur the same psychological state，we can say the two words have the same meaning.If we delve into the process of language acquisition，it is apparent that we learn a word through its usage.The mere mention of cup for a child might incur nothing in his mind，but“drink the orange in that cup”will surely help him fully understand what a cup is all about.Similarly，if you compare a red flower and a yellow flower before a child，you will soon give him the knowledge of what a flower is and how to distinguish the color yellow and red.We acquire a language through its pragmatic function，so we must give the concrete usage of words and sentence special attention in translation.As is known to us all，culture is a factor that is never afforded to be overlooked，and it is indeed a significant part in transcultural communication.For some conventional factors，language representing friendliness in one culture might be antagonistic in another.When confronted with such a situation，the translator is responsible for avoiding cultural conflict.For example，Chinese people usually take“do you have your meals”as a way of saying hello；however，it is disliked by people from western countries-they think it is privacy invasion.So a translator just takes the sentence in another language with the same function as its translation，such as“how do you do”in English.Besides，the translator is required to have a full knowledge about the author，including the society and culture he lives in，the customs of his country，and his ideological intention.That is helpful to have a correct understanding of the passage，thus enabling the translator to construct a language game by building the rules in a language game.
3 Conclusion
Meaning in the use theory has long been the core of philosophical Studies，and a multi-perspective study of that theory is of great importance for a better understanding.Meanwhile，translation is indeed an interdisciplinary study combing linguistics，philosophy and even psychology.Meaning in the use theory has provided a philosophical basis for the interpretation of meaning in translation，thus enabling us to grasp a deeper understanding through a new perspective.
參考文献：
[1]刘宓庆.翻译教学：实务与理论[M].北京：中国对外翻译出版公司，2006：357.
[2]维特根斯坦，贺绍甲译.逻辑哲学论[M].北京：商务印书馆，2010：41.
[3]陈嘉映.语言哲学[M].北京：北京大学出版社，2006：50.
[4]张汝伦.现代西方哲学十五讲[M].北京：北京大学出版社，2003.
[5]Eugene A.Nida，Language and Culture，Contexts in Translating，Shanghai：Shanghai Foreign Language Education Press，2007.
作者简介：
赵媚娇，女，汉族，山东青岛，硕士研究生，中国石油大学（华东），科技英语笔译。
Key words：meaning in use；translation；language philosophy；atmosphere
1 Theoretical Framework
In Wittgenstein’s Philosophical Investigations，he put forward his world-known theory——meaning in the use.He thought the meaning of a word lies in where its grammatical occupation resides.Any change in the grammatical order would inevitably influence the objective of the whole sentence，or even formulate a false sentence.By doing so，the meaning of a word or a sentence is prevented to be equivalent with reference.Meaning doesn’t equal to reference，and we can’t term a word has reference when it has a meaning.Besides，the meaning of a word is of the possibility to change under different circumstances.When we try to interpret a word，we are actually defining its usage.When different words have the same usage，or they function similarly in a sentence，we can say that these words have the same meaning.Before the theory of meaning in the use was put forward，people tend to take the reference of a word，mostly an object of physical presence，as its meaning.But in our daily communication，we frequently acquainted with words which do not have reference，such as dragon and phoenix.Under such a circumstance，we must figure out what the word is mean to signify，or work out what is loaded within these words，otherwise we would surely fail to understand its intention as we can never identify its reference on earth.In conclusion，the meaning of a word is determined by the atmosphere in which words function and its usage.By the word “atmosphere”，the author means the special circumstance in which the sentence was uttered，and mostly it was based on the shared knowledge between the speaker and the listener.
2 Meaning in the use and translation
Translation is actually the activity to express the meaning of a cultural chunk from a language with that of another language of the same meaning.Therefore，meaning is the core of translation.At the same time，meaning also plays a significant part in Wittgenstein’s philosophical ideas.That’s why the writer decided to make a combination of translation studies and philosophical theory.However，attention must be paid that meaning，being determined by atmosphere and usage，is not constant. 2.1 Atmosphere and Translation
Atmosphere，namely the environment in which the word functions，is of great importance in the determination of meaning and its translation.According to Wittgenstein，when we try to translate a preposition，we must make it significant，thought-bearing and alive.That means we are expected to install something beyond material existence into the lifeless linguistic symbol.But at first，we should make sure the translator have a clear and correct understanding of what the sentence is mainly about.As Wittgenstein said，there is indeed some psychological process that is connected with the operation of language，and it is this mental process that enables language to play its part.Therefore，the task of a translator is to recur this process in readers’ mind.The translator is expected to rewrite the same picture for readers，which requires him to correctly understand both the intention and meaning of a sentence in a given atmosphere.The word atmosphere actually has great similarity with context.But it differs from context in that atmosphere not only refers to the pragmatic environment，but also refers to the memory incurred by the word in the speaker’s mind.That is related to the speaker’s psychological state and his life experience.For example，we suppose John raised a docile tiger and he had a good relationship with it.When he came across a pet dog，he might say “that dog is just like a tiger！”in this situation，“like a tiger”doesn’t mean being fierce and cruel，but something cute and meek.In other words，the word“tiger”has been installed with the atmosphere of friendliness by the speaker.If the translator fails to understand its deeper meaning，he might cause translation failure.Therefore，the experience and psychological state of the speaker must be given enough attention.
2.2 The Usage of Words and Translation
The usage of words also plays an important part in translation.That is the core of Wittgenstein’s meaning in the use theory.According to Wittgenstein，when it comes to noun，people tend to identify its reference in the physical world.However，the truth is that not all the nouns have their reference.It is not necessary to confine one’s energy into defining the concrete reference in the physical world.On the contrary，the meaning of a word lies in its usage.In other words，if two words are capable of being used in the same situation and incur the same psychological state，we can say the two words have the same meaning.If we delve into the process of language acquisition，it is apparent that we learn a word through its usage.The mere mention of cup for a child might incur nothing in his mind，but“drink the orange in that cup”will surely help him fully understand what a cup is all about.Similarly，if you compare a red flower and a yellow flower before a child，you will soon give him the knowledge of what a flower is and how to distinguish the color yellow and red.We acquire a language through its pragmatic function，so we must give the concrete usage of words and sentence special attention in translation.As is known to us all，culture is a factor that is never afforded to be overlooked，and it is indeed a significant part in transcultural communication.For some conventional factors，language representing friendliness in one culture might be antagonistic in another.When confronted with such a situation，the translator is responsible for avoiding cultural conflict.For example，Chinese people usually take“do you have your meals”as a way of saying hello；however，it is disliked by people from western countries-they think it is privacy invasion.So a translator just takes the sentence in another language with the same function as its translation，such as“how do you do”in English.Besides，the translator is required to have a full knowledge about the author，including the society and culture he lives in，the customs of his country，and his ideological intention.That is helpful to have a correct understanding of the passage，thus enabling the translator to construct a language game by building the rules in a language game.
3 Conclusion
Meaning in the use theory has long been the core of philosophical Studies，and a multi-perspective study of that theory is of great importance for a better understanding.Meanwhile，translation is indeed an interdisciplinary study combing linguistics，philosophy and even psychology.Meaning in the use theory has provided a philosophical basis for the interpretation of meaning in translation，thus enabling us to grasp a deeper understanding through a new perspective.
參考文献：
[1]刘宓庆.翻译教学：实务与理论[M].北京：中国对外翻译出版公司，2006：357.
[2]维特根斯坦，贺绍甲译.逻辑哲学论[M].北京：商务印书馆，2010：41.
[3]陈嘉映.语言哲学[M].北京：北京大学出版社，2006：50.
[4]张汝伦.现代西方哲学十五讲[M].北京：北京大学出版社，2003.
[5]Eugene A.Nida，Language and Culture，Contexts in Translating，Shanghai：Shanghai Foreign Language Education Press，2007.
作者简介：
赵媚娇，女，汉族，山东青岛，硕士研究生，中国石油大学（华东），科技英语笔译。