MORPHOLOGY

noun Etymology: German Morphologie, from morph- + -logie -logy Date: 1830 1. a branch of biology that deals with the form and structure of animals and plants, the form and structure of an organism or any of its parts, 2. a study and description of word formation (as inflection, derivation, and compounding) in language, the system of word-forming elements and processes in a language, 3. a study of structure or form, structure , form , the external structure of rocks in relation to the development of erosional forms or topographic features, morphological also morphologic adjective morphologically adverb morphologist noun