WebTranslateIt Now Supports Play Framework Messages Files

By Edouard on December 18, 2025

We’re excited to announce that WebTranslateIt now supports Play Framework Messages files, making it easier than ever to localize your Play Framework applications built with Scala or Java.

What is Play Framework?

Play Framework is a high-velocity reactive web framework for Java and Scala. Created by Guillaume Bort at Zenexity and released in 2007, Play has become a popular choice for building scalable, modern web applications.

What are Play Framework Messages Files?

Play Framework uses a simplified Java properties format for internationalization. Unlike standard .properties files, Play uses a unique naming convention where the locale code is the file extension:

  • messages — default/fallback messages
  • messages.en — English
  • messages.fr — French
  • messages.de — German

Here’s an example of what a Play Framework messages file looks like:

# Application messages
hello = Hello
welcome = Welcome to our application
greeting.morning = Good morning
greeting.evening = Good evening

What’s Supported

WebTranslateIt’s support for Play Framework Messages files includes:

  • Auto-detection — Upload your messages.en file and WebTranslateIt will automatically recognize the format
  • Developer comments — Comments starting with # or ! are imported as instructions for translators
  • Namespace support — Keys using dots (e.g., greeting.morning) are fully supported
  • Magic comments — Use [MAXCHAR=xx] to set character limits or [LABEL=xxxx] to assign labels
  • UTF-8 encoding — Full support for UTF-8 encoded files
  • Variable placeholders — MessageFormat syntax like {0}, {1} is preserved

Getting Started

Getting your Play Framework app translated with WebTranslateIt is straightforward:

  1. Create a project on WebTranslateIt
  2. Upload your source messages file (e.g., messages.en) in the File Manager
  3. Add target languages for your project
  4. Translate using our translation interface, translation memory, or machine translation
  5. Download the translated files and place them in your conf/ directory

Sync with the CLI

Use WebTranslateIt’s command-line tool to automate syncing your message files:

gem install webtranslateit
wti init
wti pull

Learn More

Do you need support for a file format we don’t yet support? Let us know — we’re always happy to add support for standard formats at no cost.