Larviform

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Resembling the form or features of a larva in appearance
2. Having a shape or structure that resembles the immature form of certain animals before full development
3. Exhibiting physical characteristics typical of an early developmental stage prior to maturity

Etymology: "Larviform" is a plain technical formation: the Latin noun "larva" (a ghost or mask, later a grub or immature insect) combined with the suffix "-iform", from Latin "-iformis", meaning "having the form of" or "shaped like". Put together, the word describes something shaped like a larva, and the adjective is used in biology to describe forms that resemble the immature stages of animals rather than their adult appearance. The interest lies in the first half. In Latin, "larva" originally meant a mask or spectre, and the sense of a worm-like immature insect developed later, which is why an insect's juvenile stage took the name. Scientists in the modern period drew on this Latin stock to coin precise terms, and "larviform" belongs to that tradition of descriptive naming.