'Simiiformes' originates from New Latin, specifically built from Latin 'simia' and the Latinized suffix '-formes', where 'simia' meant 'ape' and '-formes' meant 'having the form of'.

'Simiiformes' was formed in modern scientific (New Latin) usage by combining Latin 'simia' with the taxonomic suffix '-formes' and adopted into zoological classification to name the group of 'ape-like' primates.

Initially the parts meant 'ape' + 'form/shape', conveying 'ape-like form'; over time the compound came to denote the specific taxonomic group of simian (anthropoid) primates.