topiary

American  

[toh-pee-er-ee] / ˈtoʊ piˌɛr i /

adjective

1. (of a plant) clipped or trimmed into fantastic shapes.

2. of or relating to such trimming.

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noun

• topiaries
  plural

1. topiary work; the topiary art.

2. a garden containing such work.

topiary British  

/ ˈtəʊpɪərɪ /

adjective

1. of, relating to, or characterized by the trimming or training of trees or bushes into artificial decorative animal, geometric, or other shapes

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noun

1. 1. topiary work

   2. a topiary garden

2. the art of topiary

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• topiarist
  noun
• topiarian
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• topiaries
  plural

Etymology

Origin of topiary

1585–95; < Latin topiārius pertaining to landscape-gardening or to ornamental gardens, equivalent to topi ( a ) (plural) artificial landscape (< Greek tópia (singular topion ), diminutive of tópos place) + -ārius -ary

Explanation

If you practice topiary in your yard, you'll end up with shrubs and hedges in the shapes of unicorns, lions, and giant prairie dogs, since topiary means cutting bushes into fun shapes. Topiary is probably the only art form that requires both muscle power and pruning shears: carefully trimming live shrubs to give them artful shapes. Large, groomed gardens are the most likely spots to see the result of topiary, either in the form of animals, geometric shapes, or mazes. The Latin root of topiary is topiarius, "pertaining to ornamental gardening," from the Greek topos, or "place."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

topiary topiaries

The piece will run about seven hours from sundown to sunrise, 365 days a year, just across the street from Jeff Koons’ monumental topiary sculpture “Split-Rocker.”

From Los Angeles Times ● May 27, 2026

Mapperton, near Beaminster, is an Italianate fantasy in a steep coombe studded with topiary and sky-reflecting pools.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 11, 2026

Jeff Koons stood atop a construction lift and planted a small, silvery gray dudleya succulent on the nose of his monumental topiary sculpture “Split-Rocker” at Los Angeles County Museum of Art.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 24, 2025

“It’s imperative that you do for your topiary plant what nobody else will do for you,” he said.

From Seattle Times ● May 1, 2024

Beautiful limestone mansions showed off topiary gardens of starfruit trees and window boxes bursting with moonflowers.

From "The Marvellers" by Dhonielle Clayton

The Mickey Mouse-shaped topiaries in front of Kelsey Hermanson’s house are the first hint at what visitors will find inside.

From Seattle Times ● Oct. 15, 2023

The topiaries, scorched from the onslaught, had to be replaced almost every year.

From Slate ● Oct. 7, 2023

But there will also be other markers of luxury: an indoor koi pond, oversized topiaries and a sculpture garden designed by Jonathan Adler.

From Washington Post ● Sep. 10, 2021

While the parks are closed, teams are still maintaining the topiaries, many of which are trimmed to look like various Disney characters.

From Fox News ● Apr. 23, 2020

He follows her around trees and topiaries, through coils of vines and roses, chasing glimpses of her red hair.

From "The Night Circus" by Erin Morgenstern

Related Words

• forest
• sapling
• seedling
• shrub
• timber
• wood