Abstract: A stand-alone, hand-held apparatus is provided, which combines elements of a scanning dictionary with an automatic-translation software, for in-context translation. Additionally, the apparatus may include a text-to-speech synthesis, for in-tandem exposure to spoken and translated forms of a portion of text, such as a clause, a sentence, or a few sentences. A whole document may thus be read, for example, sentence by sentence. The apparatus may further be used for teaching correct pronunciation of any portion of text, by recording the user's pronunciation of the portion of text and comparing it with a text-to-speech synthesis produced by the apparatus.