As a natural language, English is always growing. It is particularly adept at absorbing new words. What I keep wondering is what is the French word most recently added to English that no longer 'sounds French'. So far, the words this week still sound French to me. But the word 'cherish' (which came from French) sounds like a normal English word to me. But when Chaucer used it in 1385 it must have still sounded French to him. How long does it take for a word to lose the sounds of its roots? And which is the latest absorbed word that no longer 'sounds French'?

WELOME



Welcome

What I keep wondering is what is the French word most recently added to English that no longer 'sounds French'. So far, the words this week still sound French to me. But the word 'cherish' (which came from French) sounds like a normal English word to me. But when Chaucer used it in 1385 it must have still sounded French to him.

An interesting question. I'm pretty sure that it depends on the speaker, and I am not sure how French cherishen 'to cherish' (link) or parfit 'perfect' might've sounded to Chaucer.

Welcome tiberall. Funny thing is I just wanted to ask people about de - or décolletage. About the 'tage' part. The French word 'décolleté 'is in use in actual French German and Dutch in its original form. Decollete or décolleté.
Decolletage made me think it would have the meaning of something that has been detached of soaked off something. (from 'décoller-to soak off or detach something that has been glued) The French word 'décollage' meaning 'take off' (airplane).
As there have been French speaking parts in the U.S. I expected it the word to be closer to the original.

Disclaimer: French and I have a very gauzy relationship...

But I did see that décoller is not the derivation of decolletage, but rather, décolleter, so perhaps that helps the confusion. Also, it's a noun, whereas décolleté is an adjective.

Hi Bran! I had a busy summer... :0)

Yes long time since we stirred up a bit of confusion.;~) I meant to say that the French do not have the word décolletage, only décollage, which comes from a different verb. That décolleté may be and adjective in French; it is a noun in Dutch and German.
f.i. "The waiter slipped and dropped olives into the lady's décolleté".

the French do not have the word décolletage, only décollage, which comes from a different verb. That décolleté may be and adjective in French

Actually there is a word décolletage in French. It means "Action de se décolleter ou de décolleter une robe, un chemisier; résultat de cette action". Décolleter means 'to uncover (the neck, throat, shoulders)'. It is a verb derived from collet '(Roman) collar' < Latin collum 'neck'. Décolletage is an abstract noun formed from the verb décolleter.

Yes , yes you are so right! I found it now in the smaller one of my two paper dictionaries. Which proves once more that the bigger isn't always the better.
Here's Larousse online ( another industrial use of the word)

linkje

Is décalage (gap, or interval) related? It's used in airplanes too, in the rigging of flying surfaces, but more common, I suspect, in the expression, décalage horaire, time interval.

Re the original question: French missionaries settled much of Northern Indiana, but you don't hear people saying "Notre Dame" or "Terre Haute" the French way, so I guess place names may be the first French terms to get Americanized.

zmjezhd is the expert on relations. Décalage has according to the dict. various meanings ; move (to a different place )time interval (like you said ) and disproportion, lack of consensus.
Décaler meaning taking away stut, support, stay, prop.
Can't find a word 'caler' though.

My New Cassell's has caler, 'To prop up, to wedge.'

Is décalage (gap, or interval) related?

No. French décalage 'gap, offset' < décaler to move, bring forward' < caler < cale 'wedge' (probably < German Keil 'wedge'. French coller 'to attach, stick' < Latin collum 'neck'.