Talk:topiary

topiary
RFD adjective senses. --Backtobasix (talk) 16:02, 31 March 2012 (UTC)
 * Senses? Only one is tagged. The etymology claims that the adjective sense is much older than the noun, so I'm not sure about this. Ungoliant MMDCCLXIV 16:12, 31 March 2012 (UTC)
 * Yes, the adjective is the main entry in the OED. The noun is then defined as "the topiary art" (rather like the French as WF ought to know). SemperBlotto (talk) 16:16, 31 March 2012 (UTC)
 * I doubt that this meets the criteria that distinguish an adjective from a noun. DCDuring TALK 17:17, 31 March 2012 (UTC)
 * What if it was an adjective before it was a noun? A new sense never overrides an older one. DAVilla 18:18, 31 March 2012 (UTC)
 * I didn't think we took diachronic derivation all that seriously, based on our treatment of the derivation categories for affixes. In any event, the Latin adjective was used substantively. If we just want to follow the lead lemming's assertion, we can, of course. The evidence is solely attributive use, AFAIK. DCDuring TALK 18:51, 31 March 2012 (UTC)


 * I agree with DAVilla, if the adjective preceded the noun, then the term cannot be only a noun used attributively. (See also Talk:aliquot.) - -sche (discuss) 20:03, 31 March 2012 (UTC)
 * Kept. — Ungoliant (Falai) 05:04, 14 August 2012 (UTC)