Talk:Diocirea microphylla

Plants Low‑importance

	Plants portal This article is within the scope of WikiProject Plants, a collaborative effort to improve the coverage of plants and botany on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join the discussion and see a list of open tasks.PlantsWikipedia:WikiProject PlantsTemplate:WikiProject Plantsplant articles
Low	This article has been rated as Low-importance on the project's importance scale.

Australia: Western Australia / Biota Low‑importance

	Australia portal Diocirea microphylla is within the scope of WikiProject Australia, which aims to improve Wikipedia's coverage of Australia and Australia-related topics. If you would like to participate, visit the project page.AustraliaWikipedia:WikiProject AustraliaTemplate:WikiProject AustraliaAustralia articles
Low	This article has been rated as Low-importance on the project's importance scale.
	This article is supported by WikiProject Western Australia (assessed as Low-importance).
	This article is supported by WikiProject Australian biota (assessed as Low-importance).
	Need help improving this article? Ask a Librarian^{What's this?} at the National Library of Australia, or the State Library of Western Australia.
	The Wikimedia Australia chapter can be contacted via email to helpwikimedia.org.au for non-editorial assistance.

Etymology of microphylla

Microphylla is botanical Latin. It is derived from Greek. Stearn gives:

micro-: in Gk. comp., little, small; micranthus, small-flowered; microcarpus, small-fruited; microdontus, with small teeth; microglossus, with small tongues or rays...
-phyllus; in Gk. comp., leaved; macrophyllus, large-leaved; microphyllus, small-leaved; monophyllus, one-leaved...

A very similar etymology is given in Sharr:

microphyllus /G micro- small + -phyllus -leaved. ("Small-leaved" and "with small leaves" are synonymous in English.)

But -phyllus is not Greek. Please show me a Greek word ending on -phyllus. Wimpus (talk) 21:02, 22 November 2019 (UTC)[reply]

In case you are not able to provide a Greek word on -phyllus, and therefore does not seem to further corroborate your statement that -phyllus would be Greek, you should refrain from adding forms like -phyllus while labelling them as Greek. That the actual Greek form is "-phyllos" in compounds is further corroborated by Clements (1902, p. 21/341):

If the final term is a noun of the first or second declension (stem in -a or -o, nominative, -ης, -ας, -ος, masculine, -η, -α, -ος, fem. , -ον, neut.) the compound adjective will terminate in -ος, masc. and fem., -ov, neut. ... βαθυ-φυλλος (βαθύς, thick, φύλλον, τό, leaf) thick-leaved, leafy

Wimpus (talk) 00:32, 23 November 2019 (UTC)[reply]

Stearn (pg. 255, 4th ed) notes that -ος is transliterated as -us. The Greek ending -ος (os) usually becomes -us when transliterated. So, saying -phyllus is Greek is not wrong; it's just not technically correct. TelosCricket (talk) 01:12, 4 December 2019 (UTC)[reply]