Etymograph

English

topwork

From top + work.

A compound of top + work

Proto-Germanic *tuppaz ‘braid’

Proto-West Germanic *topp ‘top’

Old English topp ‘top’

Middle English top ‘the peak of a mountain or other landform’

English top

Proto-Indo-European *werǵ- ‘to make’

…

Proto-Germanic *werką

Proto-West Germanic *werk

Old English weorc ‘labor’

Middle English work

English work

Today it means

verb To perform a graft on a fruit tree to change it to a more popular or profitable cultivar.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “topwork”. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / topwork