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• morpho
  morpho

  noun

  any of various large, tropical American butterflies of the genus Morpho, having brilliant blue, iridescent wings with an underside of brown or gray and eyelike spots.
• morpho-
  morpho-

  a combining form meaning “form, structure,” used in the formation of compound words.

morpho

¹ American  

[mawr-foh] / ˈmɔr foʊ /

noun

• morphos
  plural

1. any of various large, tropical American butterflies of the genus Morpho, having brilliant blue, iridescent wings with an underside of brown or gray and eyelike spots.

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morpho- ² American  

1. a combining form meaning “form, structure,” used in the formation of compound words.

   morphology.

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morpho- British  

combining form

1. indicating form or structure

   morphology

2. morpheme

   morphophonemics

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Usage

What does morpho- mean? Morpho- is a combining form used like a prefix meaning “form, structure.” It is often occasionally used in scientific terms, especially in biology and linguistics. Morpho- comes from Greek morphḗ, meaning “form.”What are variants of morpho-?When combined with words or word elements that begin with a vowel, morpho- becomes morph-, as in morphactin. Additional related combining forms include -morphic, -morphism, and -morphous. Want to know more? Read our Words That Use articles on all four combining forms.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• morphos
  plural

Etymology

Origin of morpho¹

First recorded in 1850–55; from New Latin Morphō, genus name, from Greek Morphṓ “the Shapely, the Beautiful” (an epithet of Aphrodite in Sparta), akin to morphḗ “form, shape, figure, beauty”

Origin of morpho-²

< Greek, combining form of morphḗ

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

morpho morphos

The azure shimmer of the blue morpho confuses predators, while monarchs’ vibrant orange-and-black wings warn birds and other predators that they are poisonous.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 3, 2026

According to the Rainforest Alliance, the blue morpho is among the largest butterflies in the world, with wings spanning from five to eight inches.

From BBC ● May 8, 2026

In the Amazon, tapirs with droopy trunks and watery eyes step "mincingly" along riverbanks, and blue morpho butterflies the size of postcards careen "reckless and beautiful" through their camp.

From Salon ● May 24, 2022

Mimicking a light-filled 80-degree rainforest, this 1,200-square-foot vivarium provides close encounters with as many as 500 creatures, such as monarch, viceroy, blue morpho and emerald swallowtail butterflies, and atlas and luna moths.

From New York Times ● Nov. 25, 2021

Shay was still too skinny, even after the morpho software had pulled her toward the average.

From "Uglies" by Scott Westerfeld

When she had showed Shay her pretty morphos, Tally had mentioned how she always started by doubling her left side—that she had always hated the right side of her face.

From "Uglies" by Scott Westerfeld

Afterwards I saw many of them; sometimes when walking the forest there would be morphos always in sight.

From The Sea and the Jungle by H. M. (Henry Major) Tomlinson

We did not see a movement, except when the morphos started from the uprooted tree.

From The Sea and the Jungle by H. M. (Henry Major) Tomlinson

Or one of the morphos would flicker among those spectral bastions, aerial and bright as a fairy in Hades.

From The Sea and the Jungle by H. M. (Henry Major) Tomlinson

As we climbed the tree, to cross upon it, we disturbed several morphos.

From The Sea and the Jungle by H. M. (Henry Major) Tomlinson