Morphology
/mɔːrˈfɒl.ə.dʒi/noun
The study of the structure and form of words in a language.
Did you know?In ancient Greek, 'morphé' means form or shape, hinting at how the very structure of language can influence thought and perception.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient Greek
Greek
μορφή (morphē)
“form, shape, appearance”
Ancient Greek
Greek
λόγος (logos)
“study, discourse, reason”
19th Century
German
Morphologie
“the study of forms in biology, later adapted for linguistics”
19th Century
English
morphology
“the branch of linguistics that studies the structure of words and their meaningful components”
Explore more surprising origins