Transfigurative

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Relating to or producing a dramatic alteration of shape or appearance ; serving to elevate something into a more exalted or spiritual condition
2. Having the power to change the form or look of something ; capable of raising a thing into a nobler or sacred state
3. Bringing about a marked change in outward form ; tending to lift something into a transcendent or spiritual state

Etymology: Transfigurative is a plain formation: the adjective "transfigure" with the suffix "-ative" added. "Transfigure" comes from Latin "transfigurare," which combines "trans-" (across, beyond) with "figurare" (to shape or form, from "figura," a figure or shape). The idea is of shape carried across into another form, and English took the verb in the sense of changing a thing's outward appearance. The suffix does the adjectival work. It descends through Latin "-ativus" and Old French "-atif" into English, where it turns verbs into adjectives meaning "having the tendency or power to" do the action. So a transfigurative thing is one able to change form, and in the more elevated sense, to lift something into a higher or sacred state.

Synonyms: transformative, metamorphic