Humaniform

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Having a shape or appearance that resembles that of a human being
2. Characterized by a human-like form or structure
3. Exhibiting features or a silhouette similar to a person

Etymology: "Humaniform" is a straightforward modern formation: it joins "human" to the combining element "-iform", meaning "having the form of". That suffix goes back to Latin "-formis", from "forma", "shape" or "form", which in turn came into Latin from Greek morphē, the word behind English "morph" and "metamorphosis". The human half arrived in English by a longer route. It descends from Latin "hūmānus", passed through Old French "umain" and Middle French "humain", and reached Middle English as "humayne" before settling into the modern "human". The "-i-" linking the two halves is the ordinary connecting vowel used in English compounds built on Latin and Greek elements. Put together, the word simply describes something shaped like a person. Its parts are all old and familiar, which is why the coinage is transparent: a reader can parse it at once without needing any special knowledge of the word's history.

Synonyms: humanoid, anthropomorphic