'apocopic' originates from Greek, specifically the word 'apokopikos' (from 'apokopē'), where 'apo-' meant 'away' and 'koptein' meant 'to cut'.

'apocopic' derives from Greek 'apokopē' (ἀποκοπή) meaning 'a cutting off', passed into Late Latin/Medieval Latin as 'apocope' and then into Middle English; the modern English adjective was formed by adding the suffix '-ic' to the noun 'apocope'.

Initially it referred to the act or result of 'cutting off' (a loss of a final sound); over time it also came to describe something that exhibits that quality — 'characterized by omission of an ending'.