Glossary
Captions vs subtitles
Also called: Closed captions, Subtitles
Definition
Captions transcribe a video’s speech and meaningful sounds for viewers who can’t hear the audio, while subtitles translate or transcribe dialogue for viewers who can hear but don’t understand the language.
What “captions vs subtitles” means
The distinction comes from accessibility. Captions assume the viewer can’t hear: they include dialogue plus relevant sounds, such as “[door slams]” or “[upbeat music]”. Subtitles assume the viewer can hear: they cover dialogue only, often in another language. In everyday use, especially on social platforms, the two words are often used interchangeably.
Both can be closed (a separate track the viewer can turn on or off, such as an SRT file uploaded with the video) or open, also called burned-in captions, which are part of the image and always visible.
Why it matters for short explainer videos
Many people scroll short-form feeds with the sound off, in public or at work. On-screen text lets them follow the explanation anyway and decide to turn the sound on. Captions also help non-native speakers, viewers with hearing loss, and anyone following technical vocabulary.
For explainers, styled captions that highlight words as they are spoken double as a visual rhythm, which is why word-by-word captions became a standard on short-form platforms.
Example
A short about vaccines is published in English. Burned-in English captions follow the narration word by word. For a Spanish-speaking audience, the creator also uploads a Spanish subtitle file to YouTube; viewers can switch it on, but the burned-in English captions remain visible, so the better option is often a separate Spanish version of the video.
In Motiongist
How Motiongist handles it
Motiongist burns word-by-word captions into every video, in the narration language, and also delivers an SRT captions file you can upload to platforms that support closed captions. For another language, you generate a separate video narrated in that language, with captions and on-screen text to match, rather than adding translated subtitles to the original.
Captions transcribe the narration only (no sound descriptions), and there are no caption style presets: the look sets their style.