calque (n.) A calque — also called a loan translation — is the human-made linguistic practice of rendering a word or phrase from one language by translating its constituent parts literally into another language. Parameters: (1) it operates at the level of morphology or syntax rather than phonology; (2) it produces a novel expression in the recipient language that mirrors the source language's internal structure; (3) it is distinguished from borrowing (which imports the whole form) and from semantic extension (which stretches an existing word). Persistence mechanism: calques persist through sustained language contact, bilingual transmission, and the pedagogical circulation of comparative examples — they become entrenched when the target language lacks an existing term and the calque fills the gap. [formal: calque | substrate: mind | horizon: centuries | explicit: yes | epoch: 0.01]
Accepted ontology entry
calque
calque (n.) A calque — also called a loan translation — is the human-made linguistic practice of rendering a word or phrase from one language by translating its constituent parts literally into another language. Parameters: (1) it operates…
Definition
Why it is in scope
A phrase translated word-for-word from one language into another — it is human-made linguistic borrowing that persists through language contact, translation practice, and bilingual communities
Names and aliases
- calqueen · CANONICAL
Relations from this entry
- cmr784qq1000ks126wltnuaxhDEPENDS_ON →
A calque is a loan translation — a phrase rendered word-for-word from one language into another. Remove language and the phenomenon ceases to exist: there is no calque without languages to translate between. This is constitutive, not facilitative — the same standard accepted for toponymy DEPENDS_ON language (toponymy = naming places, requires language).
- cmru7vo390095r671nntngzp1INSTANCE_OF →
A calque IS a specific kind of loanword: a word or phrase created by literal translation from another language. A competent speaker would say 'a calque is a loanword.' Direction specific→general.
Relations to this entry
No accepted relations in this direction.
Record identity
- Created
- Jul 18, 2026, 11:36 AM UTC
- Content hash
- 9728bc1cead501ef21760c666694eb91e2b9a4a12a86f451c38d52d57f382046