A method and apparatus for adaptive speech recognition hypothesis are provided, wherein a number of ordered recognition hypotheses are generated and presented in response to a received speech input comprising natural spoken language. Generation of the recognition hypotheses comprises assigning (408) basic probabilities to at least one basic component of the speech input using language models and calculating (410) an overall probability of each of the recognition hypotheses using the assigned basic probabilities. The best hypothesis is selected (1802) by a user from the recognition hypotheses. Hypothesis generation is adapted (1810) in response to the selected best hypotheses, wherein the selected hypothesis is analyzed, a list comprising the basic components of the selected best hypothesis and the assigned basic probabilities is generated, credit is assigned to the basic components of the selected hypothesis by raising the assigned basic probabilities, and the basic probabilities of the language model are renormalized. An output is provided (306) comprising the best hypothesis; moreover, the input is translated in response to the selected best hypothesis, and a synthesized translated speech output is provided.
A METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR ADAPTIVE SPEECH RECOGNITION HYPOTHESIS CONSTRUCTION AND SELECTION IN A SPOKEN LANGUAGE TRANSLATION SYSTEM