'apse-like' originates from English, specifically a compound of 'apse' and the adjectival suffix '-like'. 'Apse' originates from Latin 'apsis', ultimately from Greek 'apsis' meaning 'arch' or 'vault'; the suffix '-like' comes from Old English 'līc' meaning 'body' or 'form'.

'apse' changed from Latin 'apsis' (from Greek 'apsis') into Old/Medieval French and Middle English forms (e.g. 'aps', 'apse') and eventually became the modern English 'apse'; the suffix '-like' derives from Old English 'līc' and was productive in Middle and Modern English as a suffix forming adjectives meaning 'having the form of' or 'resembling'.

Initially 'apsis' meant 'an arch' or 'a vaulted curve'; over time the meaning narrowed to the specific architectural recess (the apse) found in churches; '-like' originally meant 'body' or 'form' and evolved into a general adjectival suffix meaning 'similar to' or 'resembling', yielding the compound meaning 'resembling an apse'.