This article presents the partial results of an ethnographic study of professional translators. The study as a whole focuses on the use of language technologies, more specifically translation memory systems (TMs), and on the professional satisfaction of the translator in an increasingly technologized work environment. For the purposes of the article, we will focus on one aspect of our study: translators’ relationship with their text. For example, how does heavy reliance on TMs change translators’ relationship with their text? Is the systematic use of TMs problematic in some respects, as some researchers have posited? Do translators sometimes feel as if they are translating in a non-linear, discontinuous fashion? If so, how do they perceive those changes to the translation process? To answer these questions, we will examine the findings of our study conducted in three different translation firms and services located in Canada, and we will draw on data gathered in the workplace, including semi-directed interviews with over 50 language professionals and participant observation of translators at work.