'anchor-shaped' is a modern English compound formed from 'anchor' + 'shaped'. 'Anchor' originates from Old English 'ancor', ultimately from Latin 'anchora' and Greek 'ankhōra', where the root 'ankh-' meant 'hook'.

'anchor' changed from Old English 'ancor' (from Latin 'anchora' and Greek 'ankhōra'), and in modern English the compound 'anchor-shaped' developed by combining 'anchor' with the suffix '-shaped' to indicate form.

Initially, 'anchor' referred to the physical hook-like device used to moor ships, and 'anchor-shaped' meant 'having the shape of an anchor'; this basic descriptive meaning has largely remained the same.