Is there an adjective to describe an object (edit: e.g. a dog house or a headstone; the object is not necessarily a living thing) on the ground and underneath a tree? I thought of "treeside", but its meaning is obviously a bit different.
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1I don't think so. You could use "shaded", but that doesn't specifically imply a tree. "Arboreal" means "relating to trees" but doesn't imply underneath.– Jacob MattisonJun 18, 2014 at 14:50
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1I don't suppose "hypodendric" is a word?– Matt GuttingJun 18, 2014 at 15:39
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1@MattGutting What does the word mean? It's a bit too "scientific" (much more so than the "subarboreal" in the answers below) anyway.– user1551Jun 18, 2014 at 15:50
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1that was a bit of a joke :-) hypo- is a Classical Greek prefix meaning "under"; -dendric is a hypothetical adjectival form from the Classical Greek dendron, meaning "tree": thus "under a tree." But it's not an actual English word.– Matt GuttingJun 18, 2014 at 15:55
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1There is "underwood" also for growing things under trees.– ermanenJun 18, 2014 at 17:08
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3 Answers
Subarboreal is pretty close in strict definition, and could be extended to being used simply as an adjective to describe something as being beneath a tree. It is normally used to describe a species of animal or plant.
def: living or thriving under trees
See also: arboreal (leaving in/among or relating to trees)
From Latin arbor (tree) -> arboreus (of trees) and sub (beneath)
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I'll upvote the word for being on the right track, but I don't think it really satisfies his request. Living or thriving under trees is not the some as being under a tree. Jun 18, 2014 at 21:46
Try subarboreal. I don't see an entry for it at merriam-webster.com, but I see it used in at least one scientific paper with the meaning you have in mind.
There is also a link mentioning the word on the World English-Language Scrabble Players Association, whence I deduce (without checking) that it is in at least one officially-recognized Scrabble dictionary.
answered Jun 18, 2014 at 14:51
