'apocopize' originates from Modern English formation: it is formed from the noun 'apocope' + the verb-forming suffix '-ize', where 'apocope' ultimately comes from Greek 'apokopē' meaning 'cutting off'.

'apocopize' was formed in English by adding '-ize' to 'apocope' (from Late Latin/Medieval Latin and via French from Greek 'apokopē'), and this formation produced the modern verb 'apocopize'.

Initially derived from the Greek notion of 'cutting off', the meaning has remained focused on 'cutting off the end (of a word)', now expressed as 'to shorten a word by removing its final sound or syllable'.