What Is Relay Interpretation? How It Works in Online Meetings

Relay interpretation is when an interpreter does not work from the speaker's original language, but from another interpreter's version of it. For example, a speaker talks in Japanese, the English booth interprets into English, and the Arabic booth interprets from the English channel into Arabic. Relay lets a meeting offer many languages without needing an interpreter for every language pair.

Relay is a long-established method at large multilingual conferences, and online platforms now support it too. This article explains how relay works, when it makes sense, and how to set it up in a virtual meeting.

How relay interpretation works

In standard simultaneous interpretation, every booth listens to the floor, meaning the speaker's own voice. With relay, at least one booth listens to a different source: another booth's channel.

The booth that others work from is called the pivot. In the example above, English is the pivot language. The pivot interpreters carry extra responsibility, because any delay or error in their version passes on to every booth that relies on them.

When to use relay interpretation

Relay is a practical solution, not a first choice. Use it when direct interpretation is not realistic:

• Rare language combinations. It is easy to find English–Arabic interpreters in the UAE, but much harder to find interpreters who work directly between, say, Korean and Arabic.
• Many languages in one meeting. With five or six channels, booking interpreters for every possible pair is impractical. One or two pivot languages keep the team manageable.
• A guest speaker in an unexpected language. If one speaker uses a language most booths do not cover, one booth can interpret that speaker and the others can relay from it.

International organizations work with relay every day. The United Nations' six official languages are a familiar example of a multilingual setting where booths routinely depend on each other's output.

Relay vs direct interpretation

The main trade-off is delay. Listeners on a relayed channel hear the message a little later than others, so plan for this in votes, Q&A and anything time-sensitive.

How to set up relay in an online meeting

1. Choose the pivot language. Pick the language most of your interpreters can work from. In Gulf events this is often English or Arabic.
2. Brief the pivot booth. Tell them which booths rely on them. They should speak clearly, keep sentences complete and avoid long pauses.
3. Set the source for each booth. On the platform, set each relaying booth to listen to the pivot channel instead of the floor.
4. Plan what happens when the pivot is the speaker's language. If a speaker talks in the pivot language, the pivot booth goes quiet, and the relaying booths must switch back to the floor.
5. Rehearse. Test every chain in the technical rehearsal, including one handover in the pivot booth.

In SmartMeet, the host sets the channel each booth “interprets from”, so a booth can work from the floor or from another booth's channel. Listeners notice nothing different: they simply choose their language from the meeting menu. You can read about the full setup in how to set up remote simultaneous interpretation.

Relay interpretation in Gulf and MENA events

Events in the UAE and the wider Gulf often bring together Arabic, English, French, Urdu, Hindi, Russian or Chinese speakers. Interpreters who work directly between Arabic and English are easy to find in the region; interpreters who work directly between, for example, Arabic and Korean are much rarer.

A common pattern is to use English as the pivot: the English booth covers speakers in less common languages, and the Arabic, French and other booths relay from English. When most speakers use Arabic, the Arabic booth can become the pivot instead. Decide this early, because it changes which interpreters you book and how you brief them.

Tips for better quality relay

• Choose strong pivot interpreters. Their output becomes the source for other booths, so they need clear delivery and steady pace.
• Share materials with every booth. Relaying booths need the same slides and glossary as the pivot booth, so they can recognise terms even when the pivot is brief.
• Give pivot booths good audio. A wired headset and a stable wired connection matter even more when other interpreters depend on you.
• Plan speaker order. Speakers in rare languages create the longest chains, so avoid placing them right before time-critical votes.
• Allow for the extra lag. Ask moderators to pause briefly before taking questions, so relayed listeners can catch up.

Deciding team sizes for relay is covered in our guide on how many interpreters you need for a virtual meeting.

Conclusion

Relay interpretation lets a multilingual meeting serve more languages with fewer interpreters by letting one booth work from another booth's channel. It adds a small delay and makes the pivot booth critical, so choose your pivot carefully, brief every booth and rehearse every chain. With a platform that lets you set each booth's source, relay works online just as it does in a conference hall.

• Relay Interpretation
• Simultaneous Interpretation
• Language Channels
• Virtual Events