frondescent
May. 28th, 2024 07:26 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
prettygoodwordfrondescent (fron-DES-uhnt) - adj., bearing, putting forth, or resembling a profusion of leaves or fronds; leafy.
Or if we're talking ferns, frondy. Which, okay, that follows English word formation rules but just looks weird. This is much less common than the noun form, frondescence, which focuses more on the process of leafing out than the possession of leaves -- both coming from Latin frondēscēns (which has a combining form frondēscent-), present participle of frondēscere, to become leafy, inchoative* of frondēre, to put forth leaves, from frōns, foliage.
* AKA inceptive form, relating to the beginning or becoming of something. Inceptive is a more obvious term, but inchoative is such a wonderful word so I use it.
---L.
Or if we're talking ferns, frondy. Which, okay, that follows English word formation rules but just looks weird. This is much less common than the noun form, frondescence, which focuses more on the process of leafing out than the possession of leaves -- both coming from Latin frondēscēns (which has a combining form frondēscent-), present participle of frondēscere, to become leafy, inchoative* of frondēre, to put forth leaves, from frōns, foliage.
* AKA inceptive form, relating to the beginning or becoming of something. Inceptive is a more obvious term, but inchoative is such a wonderful word so I use it.
---L.
