Other forms: shapeshifters
A shapeshifter is a being that can change its form at will. A cunning shapeshifter, the shapeshifter took her form, shapeshifters in the wood.
The idea is nearly universal in folklore — werewolves in Europe, kitsune in Japan, skin-walkers in Navajo tradition — and what unites them is the fear of not knowing who is who. It is a staple of fantasy fiction. Note that the compound is shape plus shifter and is modern.
1nounshapeshifterA being that can change its form at will.
“In the legend, the old woman was really a shapeshifter who could turn into a wolf.”
shapeshifter is a mythical being.
Shape plus shifter, a modern English compound for an idea far older than the word.
From shape + shifter.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA