Zoomorphic

 WORD OF THE DAY

zoomorphic / adjective / zoh-uh-MOR-fik

Definition
1: having the form of an animal
2: of, relating to, or being a deity conceived of in animal form or with animal attributes

Examples
"Wow what a wonderful stoneware vase. … The zoomporphic rams head handles add real pizzazz to the visual impact."
— John Sikorski, The Gainesville (Florida) Sun, 29 May 2021

Large, spiral conch shells, probably once home to ancient sea snails and now notched by hand at the apex to form a trumpet, are incised with images of warriors, hunters and the dead — as well as zoomorphic creatures that may well be crocodiles.
— Christopher Knight, latimes.com, 18 Apr. 2018

Did You Know?
Zo- (or zoo-) derives from the Greek word zōion, meaning "animal," and -morph comes from the Greek morphē, meaning "form."
These two forms combined to give us the adjective zoomorphic in the 19th century to describe something that resembles an animal. English includes other words that were formed from zo- or zoo-, such as zoology (made with -logy, meaning "science").
And there are also other words that were formed from -morph, such as pseudomorph, for a mineral having the outward form of another species. (The combining form pseud- or pseudo- means "false.")