'arabidopsis' originates from New Latin, formed from the genus name 'Arabis' (a related genus in the mustard family) + the Greek suffix '-opsis' meaning 'appearance' or 'resembling'.

'arabidopsis' was coined in botanical (New Latin) usage by combining 'Arabis' + '-opsis' to mean 'resembling Arabis'; it became established as the modern genus name 'Arabidopsis' in taxonomic literature.

Initially it literally meant 'resembling Arabis', but over time it came to denote the distinct genus 'Arabidopsis' and, in practice, the model species 'Arabidopsis thaliana'.