amorphous
/əˈmɔ(ɹ)fəs/ adjective
- adjective Lacking a definite form or clear shape. “amorphous blob”
- adjective (by extension) Being without definite character or nature.
- adjective (by extension) Lacking organization or unity.
- adjective (physics) In the non-crystalline solid state of, or being a non-crystalline counterpart to, a crystalline solid. “Glass is an amorphous solid, but some glass is called "crystal" because it looks crystalline and has been called crystal since before humans even understood molecular structure at all.”
- adjective (set theory, of a set) Infinite and not the disjoint union of two infinite subsets.
Synonyms
formless shapeless noncrystalline amorphic unshaped unshapely unstructured uncrystallized uncrystallised
Antonyms
structured well-defined crystalline crystal misshapen shapely
Etymology
From Ancient Greek ἄμορφος (ámorphos, “without form, shapeless, deformed”) (itself from ἀ- (a-, “without”) + μορφή (morphḗ, “form”) + -ous. By surface analysis, a- + -morphous.
Webster’s 1913
- adjective Having no determinate form; of irregular; shapeless. Kirwan.
- adjective Without crystallization in the ultimate texture of a solid substance; uncrystallized.
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “amorphous”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details