'arborescence' originates from French, specifically the word 'arborescence', where 'arbor' meant 'tree' and the suffix '-escence' (from Latin '-escens') indicated 'beginning to be' or 'becoming'.

'arborescence' developed from Latin roots (Latin 'arbōr' = 'tree' and a form like 'arbōrescēns' meaning 'becoming tree-like'), passed into Old/Middle French as 'arborescence' and was borrowed into English from French as the modern term 'arborescence'.

Initially it conveyed the sense 'becoming tree-like' or 'having the nature of a tree'; over time it settled into the noun sense 'a tree-like form or branching structure' used in natural sciences and technical fields.