morph

The combining form –morph is used like a suffix meaning “form, structure.” It is often used in scientific terms, especially in biology. Historically, –morph has been used in the pseudoscience of somatotype, which seeks to typify body shapes.

The form –morph ultimately comes from Greek morphḗ, meaning “form.” The equivalent combining form from Latin is –form, from –fōrmis, meaning “having the form of.”

What are variants of –morph?

The form –morph is related to the forms –morphous and –morphic, meaning “having the shape, form, or structure.” Other related forms are –morphism, morph–, and morpho–. Want to know more? Read our Words That Use articles on all five forms.

An example of a term that features the form –morph is biomorph, “a painted, drawn, or sculptured free form or design suggestive in shape of a living organism, especially an ameba or protozoan.”

The bio– part of the word means “life,” from Greek bíos. The form –morph, as we have seen, means “form.” Biomorph literally means “life form.”

What are some words that use the combining form –morph?

• dimorph (using the equivalent form of –morph in Greek)
• ectomorph
• endomorph
• mesomorph
• rhizomorph

What are some other forms that –morph may be commonly confused with?

• -form
• -mony
• -most

The combining form rhizo– means “root.” Keeping this in mind, what does the scientific term rhizomorph literally mean?