Definition

Noun: A loan translation is a compound word or phrase that is created by translating each part of a foreign expression literally into the native language. It is a type of borrowing where the meaning and structure are imported, but the actual words are native.

Examples

• The English word "superman" is a loan translation of the German word "Übermensch."
• "It goes without saying" is a loan translation from the French phrase "cela va sans dire."
• The English term "flea market" is considered a loan translation from the French "marché aux puces."

Advanced Usage

• Linguistic Process: Loan translation is also known as calque. It is a common process in language contact and evolution, often used for translating new concepts, book titles, or technical terms.
• Recognition: A key feature is that the resulting phrase sounds natural in the borrowing language, often obscuring its foreign origin to native speakers.

Variants and Related Words

• Calque (n): The direct synonym for loan translation. It is the more technical term used in linguistics.
  • "Skyscraper" is a calque from the French "gratte-ciel."
• Loanword (n): A word adopted directly from another language with little or no translation (e.g., "sushi" from Japanese). This contrasts with a loan translation, which involves translation.

Synonyms

• Calque
• Literal translation (in this specific, lexical sense)

Related Idioms/Phrases

• To calque (from) (v): The rarely used verbal form meaning to create a loan translation.
  • The phrase was calqued from the original Latin text.

Noun

1. an expression introduced into one language by translating it from another language
   • `superman' is a calque for the German `Ubermensch'