URGLOSSARY used without permission revised the Ides of March 2014 glos·sa·ry Pronunciation: primarystressglässchwaremacron, -ri also primarystressglodots- Function: noun Inflected Form(s): -es Etymology: Medieval Latin glossarium, from Latin glossa difficult word requiring explanation + -arium -ary : a collection of textual glosses <an edition of Shakespeare with a good glossary> or of terms limited to a special area of knowledge <a glossary of technical terms> or usage <a glossary of dialectal words> Merriam Webster Unabridged tangent, adj. and n. [ad. L. tangens, tangent-em, pr. pple. of tangĕre to touch; used by Th. Fincke, 1583, as n. in sense = L. līnea tangens tangent or touching line. In F. tangent, -e adj., tangente n. (Geom.), Ger. tangente n.] c. In general use, chiefly fig. from b, esp. in phrases (off) at, in, upon a tangent, ie off or away with sudden divergence, from the course or direction previously followed; abruptly from one course of action, subject, thought, etc, to another. (http://dictionary.oed.com) As in off on a tangent. “Practice, repetition, and repetition of the repeated with ever increasing intensity are…the way.” Zen in the Art of Archery by Eugen Herrigel. For many terms, this glossary contains definitions from multiple sources, each with their own nuance, each authors variation emphasized. Reading the repeated definitions, with their slight variations, helps create a fuller, more overall understanding of the meaning of these terms. The etymology of the entries reinforces and may repeat the repetitions. Wax on, wax off. Sand da floor. For sometime, when I encounter a term I don’t understand (and there are very many), I have been looking them up in the oed and copying the definition into a Word document. And as I have found glossaries, I have encorporated their data int this list. The following is a combination (conglomeration) of numerous glossaries plus odd definitions from carpology, ecology, genetics, geology, geomorphology, pedology, nursery trade, zoology, yada yada, &c. It also contains terms from the other UP UR C manuscripts that I do not understand. If you find a term in the manuscripts or within a definition in this glossary that is not explained in this glossary, please email [email protected] and I will attempt to add the term. Several sources are British and Australian. In a direct quote, British spelling will be preserved. The rest is being Americanised. Summer 2013, this doc is going more printer green. Small changes are being made so that if someone prints this list, slightly less ink, toner, or paper is used. Plural is abbreviated pl no period, as is confer cf, with etc, eg, ie, and OED to oed MFN to mfn S&K08 to sk08 &. Saving the world one sheet of paper & one printer cartridge at a time. A a- prefix (ancient Greek ἀ-, variant of ἀν- an- occurring before a consonant) Prefix meaning without or not; - less; a sense of privation. Cf ex-. ab prefix () Prefix meaning away from or departing abaxial adj. (Latin ab, from, away from & axis, axle) The surface of any structure which is remote or turned away from the axis, such as the lower surface of a leaf; located on the side away from the axis; said of a surface facing away from the axis of the structure to which it is attached; on the side of a lateral organ away from the axis or stem; of, pertaining to, or designating the surface (usually the underside) of a leaf, etc, which during development initially faces away from the main axis or stem. On the side of a structure turned away from the main axis. “Away from the axis; eg the "lower" or dorsal surface of a leaf, the "outer" side of a flower or group of nutlets. Cf adaxial.” (mfn) On the side away from the axis, usually refers to the underside of a leaf relative to the stem. aberrant adj. Departing from the normal or usual. ablaut n. (German Ablaut (1819 in the specific sense with reference to a phenomenon in Indo-European languages: J. Grimm Deutsche Grammatik I. 543; from 16th cent. in more general senses in German grammarians), from ab (see of prep.), & Laut sound (Middle High German lūt, Old High German hlūt , lūtī, liutī, lūtīn; either from lūt loud adj., or from its Germanic base). It is difficult to tell whether Grimm (of the Brothers Grimm) was aware of the earlier uses by German grammarians, but the term was certainly popularized by him. (oed)) The morphological variation of a root vowel in Germanic & other Indo-European languages; occurring esp. in Germanic strong verbs, as English sing, sang, song, & distinguished from variation arising from assimilation to a succeeding vowel sound (oed) abortifacient n. & adj. (scientific Latin abortifacient-, abortifaciens (from J. E. Quekett 1841, in Trans. Linn. Soc. 18 471, as specific epithet of an ergot fungus), from classical Latin abortus n., -i- connective, & -faciens present participle of facere, to make) “A drug or other agent that causes the premature termination of pregnancy” (oed). abortive adj. (Latin abortus, an untimely birth, or classical Latin abortīvus -a -um, born prematurely) Defective; barren, unproductive; not developed or imperfectly developed; defective; abscise v. To cut off. Hence abscission, abscissive, abscissile. abscission n. (Latin abscindĕre to tear or cut off, from ab off, away, & scindĕre to tear, rend; or post-classical Latin abscission-, abscissio action of tearing up or uprooting (4th cent.), excommunication (5th cent.; from classical Latin absciss-, past participial stem of abscindere) A clean-cut scar or separating of a leaf from a self-healing; the natural separation or detachment of a part of a plant, typically a dead leaf or ripe fruit. Shedding branches, leaves, or flowers at a seam; usually seasonally (ie, leaves abscise in the Fall in New England). acaulescent adj. (scientific Latin acaulescent-, acaulescens, from Greek a, without, & Latin caulis, from Greek καυλός, kaulos, stem, stalk, especially cabbage-stalk, cabbage) Having no stem or seemingly without a stem; stemless, or apparently so; lacking a distinct stem. “Apparently stemless; having a very short stem, or a stem concealed in the ground” (oed). With lower leaves reduced to sheaths or scales so that leaves/flowers appear to arise directly from rootstock (wfsne). acaulous adj Without a stem. accrescent adj. (accrescent ac*cres"cent, a. [Latin accrescens, -entis, past participle of accrescere, from ad & crescere to grow.) Increasing abnormally in size with age; growing larger after flowering. “Continuing to grow; growing larger after flowering; spec. designating parts of a flower which normally fall off or wither after fertilization but instead continue growing” (oed). accrescent fruit n. accession n. A sample of a plant variety collected from a specific location (gran). accessory flower parts n. Sepal & petal organs found on flowers. The sepals & petals are not essential for pollination but may aid in attracting insects or other organisms. acerate, acerose, acerous adj. (Latin acer sharp & English -ate or -ose, -ous) Needle-like, having needlelike leaves, usually acerose. acerose adj. Narrow with a sharp, stiff point, with a needle-like tip; "needle-pointed". -aceus Suffix meaning resembling, eg myrtaceus, foliaceus. achene, achaene, achænium, achenium, achenia, akene n. (scientific Latin achena, from ancient Greek ἀ-, a-, privation, & χαίνειν, khainein, to gape or to yawn; compare Hellenistic Greek ἀχανής, akhanes, not gaping) Any small, dry fruit with one seed whose outer covering (pericarp) does not burst when ripe. A dry, one-seeded, indehiscent fruit with a relatively thin wall in which the seed coat is not fused to the ovary wall. A hard, one- seeded, indehiscent nutlet with a tight pericarp. A dry, single-seeded fruit that does not open at maturity. “An indehiscent, dry, one-seeded fruit originating from a single carpel, such as the ‘seed’ of a sunflower or dandelion” (oed). A small indehiscent, usually single-seeded fruit with a dry pericarp that is contiguous to the seed but distinguishable from the seed coat, eg Helianthus annuus, Asteraceae (sk08). “The single seed remains within the ovary wall & so what most of us would call a seed is really a fruit … although the dry types are often referred to as achenes & the fleshy types as drupes.” C. Tudge 2000, Variety of Life ii. xxv. 597. “A dry indehiscent fruit, strictly speaking one derived from a single superior carpel, but broadly used for similar fruits ("nutlets") derived from more than one carpel or (as in Asteraceae) from an inferior ovary” (mfn). A dry, usually 1-seeded fruit that does not separate or split open at maturity (newfs). achenetum n. A multiple fruit of indehiscent carpels with the pericarp of each (achene-type) fruitlet contiguous to the seed. acicula, acicle n. A needle-shaped projection. Needle-shaped. Hence acicular acicular adj. (Latin acicula, a small needle) Slender & pointed; needle-like & with a sharp point; shaped like the needle of a pine tree "needle-like". aciculate adj. Finely striated by minute, needle-like bristles Acid tolerance n. The weathering of soils can result in acidification, limiting the types of plant or microbes that will grow. Repeated fertilization with ammonia can also lead to acidification. To overcome such problems the soil must be limed, or plant species & microbes used that are tolerant of acidity. (rrl) acorn n. (Middle English oke-corne, akorne, Old English æcern, possibly from Greek ἄκρον, akron, top, point peak) The specialized fruit of members of the genus Quercus, Oaks, that is composed of a nut with a cap of overlapping rows of scales, also called a cup or cupule. “The fruit or seed of the oak-tree; an oval nut growing in a shallow woody cup or cupule” (oed). acrid adj. acro- Prefix meaning of or towards the tine.