'arcate' originates from Late Latin, specifically the word 'arcatus', where 'arcus' meant 'bow' or 'arch'.

'arcate' changed from the Late Latin word 'arcatus' and was adopted into English with the sense of 'having an arch' (compare related adjective 'arcuate').

Initially, it meant 'provided with or having the form of an arch', and this meaning has largely remained as the modern sense 'shaped like an arch'.