metamorphosis
A transformation, such as one performed by magic.
Other meanings
A noticeable change in character, appearance, function, or condition.
A change in the form and often habits of an animal after the embryonic stage during normal development (e.g. the transformation of a caterpillar into a butterfly or a tadpole into a frog).
Synonyms
- metabolism
Related words
- hemimetamorphosis
- holometamorphosis
- metamorphosic
- semimetamorphosis
- ultrametamorphosis
- hypermetamorphosis
- intermetamorphosis
- metamorphosist
- prometamorphosis
- metramorphosis
Word history
From Ancient Greek "μεταμόρφωσις".
Where this comes from
This definition is adapted from “metamorphosis” on Wiktionary, by its contributors; related-word lists use Open English WordNet (CC BY 4.0, based on Princeton WordNet), published under CC BY-SA 4.0. This page is published under the same licence.