glossarial

a glossarial mind is one that prefers to enter through the back of a book. a glossarial conversation begins with definitions, sometimes unconvincingly. a glossarial room — and there are several in the labyrinth — is one whose contents are arranged for retrieval rather than encounter. the library is partly glossarial; the garden is not.

the glossarial habit is harmless in moderation. carried too far, it tempts one to read the table of contents in place of the book. compare cataphraxis, which sometimes follows, and footnotelore, which sometimes precedes.

in a sentence:   "a glossarial introduction to the city — alphabetical by street, never followed."