'apothecary' originates from Late Latin, specifically the word 'apothecarius', ultimately from Greek 'apothēkē' meaning 'storehouse' or 'repository'.

'apothecary' changed from Late Latin 'apothecarius' to Old French 'apothicaire' and Middle English 'apotecary'/'apothicary', eventually becoming the modern English word 'apothecary'.

Initially it referred to a 'storehouse' or someone associated with a repository; over time it came to mean specifically a person who kept and prepared medicines and then the shop where they were sold; the modern meaning is 'pharmacist' or 'pharmacy' (now somewhat archaic).