A Comparative Analysis of AI Translation Tools for Chinese University Students' English Writing Assistance
Abstract
With the rapid development of artificial intelligence, AI translation tools have gained widespread popularity among Chinese university students in their daily lives and academic studies. College students have grown accustomed to relying on such tools to finish English writing and revise linguistic errors, making AI translation an indispensable auxiliary resource for their English learning. This paper selects three mainstream translation platforms, namely Doubao, Youdao Translate and ChatGPT, which represent domestic Chinese generative AI, traditional Chinese translation software and the most popular overseas generative AI respectively. This paper compares their translation accuracy on formal news articles and informal personal letters from three dimensions: grammar, lexical selection and textual coherence. Adopting data analysis and comparative analysis to ensure objectivity and rigor, this research intends to help undergraduates pick high-quality translation aids. The experimental results reveal that ChatGPT achieves the best overall translation performance, followed by Youdao Translate and then Doubao. In conclusion, ChatGPT is the most suitable option for Chinese college students in English writing practice.
References
- Lee Sangmin Michelle. (2020). The impact of using machine translation on EFL students' writing.Computer Assisted Language Learning, 33(3), 157-175. https://doi.org/10.1080/09588221.2018.1553186.
- Zhang, L., Yu, Y. Y., & Pan, Z. X. (2026). A study on the feedback methods and effects of large language models assisting second language writing.Foreign Language Research, (1), 77-86. https://doi.org/10.16263/j.cnki.23-1071/h.2026.01.012.
- Wang, X. L., Luo, Y. X., & Wang, L. (2024). Can machines replace human thinking?--A comparative study based on ChatGPT and Youdao Translation.Translation Studies, (1), 62-76.
- Ibrahim Adeshola & Adeola Praise Adepoju. (2024). The opportunities and challenges of ChatGPT in education.Interactive Learning Environments, 32(10), 6159-6172. https://doi.org/10.1080/10494820.2023.2253858.
- Zhan, J. L., & Zhou, C. Y. (2026). The impact of Grammarly on L2 grammar learning strategies, grammar grit, and grammar competence in multi-round continuation writing (in English).Chinese Journal of Applied Linguistics, 49(1), 112-132, +161.
- Linders Guido M & Louwerse Max M. (2023). Lingualyzer: A computational linguistic tool for multilingual and multidimensional text analysis.Behavior Research Methods, 56(6), 5501-5528. https://doi.org/10.3758/S13428-023-02284-1.