本书涉及英汉两种语言在“语音”、“拼字法”、“词汇”、“句法”、“语义”、“语篇”、“修辞”及“文化”等八个不同层面的比较及相关的翻译讨论，编排体系和论述内容具有清晰的层次性和较好的系统性。
本书把英汉两种语言的“对比”和“英汉互译”密切联系，系统论述英汉两种语言在各层面的诸多差异如何导致翻译中的各种“转换”处理。这让教师在其教学中不仅能使学生知其然（What？→英汉语在各层面有何区别？How？→翻译中应如何处理？），还能使学生知其所以然（Why？→翻译中为何这样处理？）。
本书既非英汉对比纯理论性探讨，也非英汉翻译纯实践性阐发，而是把英汉语言及其对比相关理论与英汉翻译实践案例紧密结合，既注重理论探析又注重实践训练，既注重学术探究又注重实训应用，从而使得本书在理论性与实践性、学术性与应用性之间达到了良好的平衡、兼顾与融通。
本书用英语撰写，可直接满足高等学校外语专业英语教师和翻译教师的教学之需，以及英语及翻译学习者的学习之需。
本书可作为高等院校英语专业和翻译专业本科生的教学用书，也可作为翻译专业硕士研究生、英语语言文学专业和外国语言学与应用语言学专业硕士研究生的教学用书。此外，本书也可作为通识核心课程教材满足非英语或非翻译专业本科学生的英语学习及翻译学习之需。

Chapter 1 Introduction
1.1 Background
1.2 Overview of differences between English and Chinese and translation
Chapter 2 Comparison of Sound Systems and Translation
2.1 Introduction
2.2 Comparison of English and Chinese vowels
2.3 Comparison of English and Chinese consonants
2.4 Comparison of tone and intonation
2.5 Comparison of rhythm and rhyme and translation
Chapter 3 Comparison of Writing Systems and Translation
3.1 Introduction
3.2 Chinese writing system
3.3 English writing system
3.4 Translation involving the orthographic features of the two languages
3.5 Untranslatability due to the orthographic features of the two languages
Chapter 4 Comparison of Morphology/Lexis and Translation
4.1 Comparison of morphological structure
4.2 Comparison of the recognition of words
4.3 Comparison of word formation and translation
4.4 Comparison of parts of speech and translation
4.5 Shift of parts of speech in translation
Chapter 5 Comparison of Syntax and Translation
5.1 Comparison of subject and translation
5.2 Hypotaxis vs. parataxis :
5.3 Subject prominence vs. topic prominence
5.4 Passive vs. active
5.5 Word order
Chapter 6 Comparison of Semantics and Translation
6.1 Three categories of meaning and translation
6.2 Four types of semantic relation and translation
6.3 Translation of terms bearing the semantic relation of absence
6.4 Functions of language and translation
Chapter 7 Comparison of Text and Translation
7.1 Introduction
7.2 Comparison of cohesion and translation
7.3 Comparison of coherence and translation
7.4 Comparison of thematic structure and translation
Chapter 8 Comparison of Rhetoric and Translation
8.1 Simile
8.2 Metaphor
8.3 Pun
8.4 Zeugma
Chapter 9 Comparison of Culturally-loaded Terms and Translation
9.1 Comparison of color terms and translation
9.2 Comparison of animal terms and translation
9.3 Comparison of plant terms and translation
Reference Key to the Exercises
Glossary
Bibliography