Understanding Calques in Language Contact Situations

Calque (from the Latin word "calcar", meaning "heel") is a term used in linguistics to describe a loanword or a borrowing that has been adapted to the phonological and grammatical system of the target language. In other words, a calque is a word or phrase that has been "transplanted" from one language to another, but with significant changes to fit the new language's grammar and sound system.

For example, the English word "restaurant" is a calque of the French word "restauration", which was borrowed into English but with changes to fit English pronunciation and grammar. The original French word "restauration" has a different stress pattern and sounds differently than the English word "restaurant".

Calques are common in language contact situations where one language is heavily influenced by another, and they can provide insight into the history and evolution of languages. They can also be used as a tool for studying linguistic differences and similarities between languages.