A method of translating a natural language input 10 into a formal computer command 14 comprises the steps of translating the input command into a category at a first translation level 102 with a further translation at a second level 102 associated with the category. Further translation may occur at additional levels as determined by the preceding translation level. Preferably a plurality of models 212 will be provided at each level, each model being associated with a category and comprising a subset of formal commands. Preferably the formal command 14 will be applied to an application 16. In this instance the first level categories can be associated with the application, the second and subsequent levels being associated with specific application functions.. In a second embodiment probability scoring 214 may be used to determine which category should be used at the next level of translation where at least two possible candidate categories have been identified.. A method of building the category models is also claimed.
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