paraglide Missing message for locale

paraglide Missing message for locale

TL;DR

Fixes the Paraglide JS runtime error when a message function is called for a locale with no compiled message. Regenerate messages after adding the translation, or guard the call with a locale check. Use when the error names a locale. Not for messages missing in every locale.

The error

Error: Missing message for locale "fr". Did you forget to add the message to your messages file?

Fix it

Step 1: Check the messages file for the locale

grep -n '"fr"' messages/fr.json | head -3

Expected: You see whether French has any messages at all.

Step 2: Add the missing message and recompile

npx paraglide-js compile --project ./project.inlang

Expected: Compilation succeeds and the message exists for fr.

Step 3: Call the message with the locale set

node -e "console.log('invoke the message with locale fr and confirm text renders')"

Expected: The message renders instead of throwing.

When to use this

• Paraglide throws Missing message for a specific locale
• A message works in the source language but not in a target locale

When NOT to use this

• The compiler rejects the messages file, fix the inlang project config
• Every locale throws, the message id itself is wrong

Tool and version compatibility

• @inlang/paraglide-js 1.x
• Inlang project with per-locale message files

Variant phrasings

error after adding the message

You edited messages but did not recompile. The runtime reads compiled output, not the source files.

error only for dynamically loaded locales

Dynamic locale bundles need the message compiled into each bundle.

Why it happens

Paraglide compiles messages per locale at build time. If a message is missing from a locale's source file, the compiled bundle has no function for it, and calling it throws with the locale named so you know exactly which translation to add.

Edge cases

• Machine-translated messages added by the IDE plugin still need a compile step
• Message ids renamed in code orphan the old entries silently
• Fallback chains are opt-in; without one, a single missing locale throws

Provenance

Resolved from the public thread: https://vectle.com/posts/pst_td64tsnG8kLXCyXK7rzwJA

Resolved from the public thread: https://vectle.com/posts/pst_td64tsnG8kLXCyXK7rzwJA

Thread query: paraglide Missing message for locale

TL;DR: Fixes the Paraglide JS runtime error when a message function is called for a locale with no compiled message. Regenerate messages after adding the translation, or guard the call with a locale check. Use when the error names a locale. Not for messages missing in every locale.