calque

/kælk/

Meanings

noun

A word or phrase in a language formed by word-for-word or morpheme-by-morpheme translation of a word in another language.

Examples :

"The word "watershed" is a calque of the German "Wasserscheide"."

verb

To adopt (a word or phrase) from one language to another by semantic translation of its parts.

Examples :

"French speakers sometimes calque English phrases, such as translating "skyscraper" literally into "gratte-ciel." "

language linguistics word

Related Words

skyscraper noun

/ˈskaɪˌskɹeɪp.ə(ɹ)/ /ˈskaɪˌskɹeɪpɚ/

A very tall building with a large number of floors.

"The new skyscraper downtown is taller than any building in the city. "

watershed noun

/ˈwɔːtəʃɛd/ /ˈwɔtɚʃɛd/

The topographical boundary dividing two adjacent catchment basins, such as a ridge or a crest.

"The watershed between the two school districts runs along the highest peak of the mountain range. "

language noun

[ˈleɪŋɡwɪd͡ʒ]

A body of words, and set of methods of combining them (called a grammar), understood by a community and used as a form of communication.

"Deaf and mute people communicate using languages like ASL."

sometimes adjective

/ˈsʌmtaɪmz/

Former; sometime.

"My sometimes neighbor, a retired teacher, still visits the school occasionally. "

english noun

/ˈɪŋ.ɡlɪʃ/

Spinning or rotary motion given to a ball around the vertical axis, as in billiards or bowling.

"The bowler added some english to the ball to make it hook sharply towards the pins. "

semantic noun

/sɪˈmæntɪk/

In such writing systems as the Chinese writing system, the portion of a phono-semantic character that provides an indication of its meaning; contrasted with phonetic.

"The semantic component of the Chinese character for "tree" helps you understand its meaning, while the phonetic part indicates how to pronounce it. "

translation noun

/tɹæns-/ /tɹæn(t)sˈleɪʃ(ə)n/

The act of translating, in its various senses:

"The translation of the Spanish instructions into English helped my grandfather understand how to assemble the furniture. "

speakers noun

/ˈspiːkəz/ /ˈspikɚz/

One who speaks.

"At the conference, the speakers shared their knowledge about renewable energy. "

literally adverb

/ˈlɪtəɹəli/ /ˈlɪ.ɾɚ.ə.li/

Word for word; not figuratively; not as an idiom or metaphor

"When I saw on the news that there would be no school tomorrow because of the snowstorm, I literally jumped for joy, and hit my head on the ceiling fan."

morpheme noun

/ˈmɔː(ɹ)fiːm/

The smallest linguistic unit within a word that can carry a meaning.

"The word "unbreakable" has three morphemes: "un-", "break", and "-able", each contributing to its overall meaning. "

another pronoun

/æˈnʌð.ə(ɹ)/ /əˈnʌð.ə(ɹ)/ /æˈnʌð.ɚ/ /əˈnʌð.ɚ/

An additional one of the same kind.

"There is one sterling and here is another"

translating verb

/trænzˈleɪtɪŋ/ /trænsˈleɪtɪŋ/

Senses relating to the change of information, etc., from one form to another.

"She is translating the English book into French so her mother can read it. "