met·a·mor·pho·sis (mĕtˌə-môrˈfə-sĭs)

1. A marked change in appearance, character, condition, or function. Also called transformation.
2. A change in the form and often habits of an animal during normal development after the embryonic stage. Metamorphosis includes, in insects, the transformation of a maggot into an adult fly and a caterpillar into a butterfly and, in amphibians, the changing of a tadpole into a frog.
3. A usually degenerative pathological change in the structure of a particular body tissue.

Related Forms:

• metˌa·mor·photˈic (-môr-fŏtˈĭk) adjective