mor|phol|o|gy

mor|phol|o|gy «mr FOL uh jee», noun, plural -gies.

1. the branch of biology that deals with the form and structure of animals and plants without regard to function.

2. the form and structure of an organism or of one of its parts.

3. a) the branch of grammar or linguistics that deals with forms of words and their formation, as by inflection or derivation: »

... the first two steps in morphology are to identify morphs and classify them (George P. Faust).

b) the patterns of words in a language, especially as they apply to composition, inflection, and derivation: »

So likewise, the syntax must be stated in terms of the morpheme sequences described in the morphology (H. A. Gleason, Jr.).

4. the study of forms in any science, as in physical geography or geology.

╂[< Greek morph form + English -logy]