"Epithet" can refer to a noun or an adjective. Roberto gave the first
definition from the Oxford English Dictionary (2nd edition) as an adjective.
The second definition is "significant appellation", where appellation
effectively means "name."
Webster's Third New International Dictionary is more precise. An epithet is
a "characterizing word or phrase"; in particular it can be "the part of a
scientific name identifying the species, variety, or other subunit within a
genus...in the scientific name _Rosa chinensis longifolia_, _chinensis_ is
the specific epithet..."
Gary
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Gary Rosenberg, Ph.D. [log in to unmask]
Malacology & Invertebrate Paleontology gopher://erato.acnatsci.org
Academy of Natural Sciences http://www.acnatsci.org
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