'anther-shaped' originates from English, formed from 'anther' + '-shaped', where 'anther' meant 'the pollen-bearing part of a stamen' and '-shaped' meant 'having the shape of'.

'anther' derives from Greek 'anthera', ultimately from 'anthos' meaning 'flower'; it passed into scientific Latin/Neo-Latin as 'anthera' and then into modern English as 'anther', after which compounds like 'anther-shaped' were formed in English.

Initially, 'anther' referred specifically to the pollen-bearing part of a flower; the compound 'anther-shaped' has been used in botanical description to mean 'having the shape of an anther' and has retained that descriptive sense.