carte
UK[kɑːt]US[kɑːrt]
n
A menu or list of dishes available in a restaurant.
n
A piece of paper or card; a document, especially a map or a chart (archaic).
Etymology
The word 'carte' entered English directly from French in the late 16th century, originally meaning a card, map, or formal document. Its French source derives from the Latin 'charta', meaning a leaf of papyrus, paper, or a writing. Latin 'charta' itself was borrowed from the Greek 'khártēs', referring to a sheet of papyrus. The semantic journey from a material for writing to a list of dishes illustrates a classic metonymic shift, where the object (the paper) comes to stand for the specific content written upon it, particularly within the context of French dining culture.
Analysis
The word is a simplex loanword from French. It cannot be meaningfully segmented into productive morphemes within modern English spelling.
Examples
The restaurant offers a fixed-price menu, but you can also order à la carte.
He studied the carte carefully before deciding on the sea bass.
In historical contexts, a 'carte blanche' literally meant a blank sheet of paper, signifying full discretionary power.