'antapodosis' originates from Greek, specifically the word 'ἀνταπόδοσις' ('antapodosis'), where 'anti-' meant 'in return' or 'against' and 'apodosis' meant 'a giving back' or 'recompense'.

'antapodosis' passed into Medieval/Latin usage as 'antapodosis' and was later adopted into modern English with little change in form or spelling.

Initially it meant 'a giving back, recompense' in Greek; over time it retained that sense and also came to be used for related rhetorical notions (reversal or return of phrasing) in literary contexts.