'bargepole' originates from English, specifically the words 'barge' and 'pole', where 'barge' comes from Late Latin 'barca' meaning 'boat' and 'pole' comes from Old English 'pāl' meaning 'stake' or 'post'.

'bargepole' changed from the two-word phrase 'barge pole', originally used literally to mean a pole for moving a barge; the figurative use as in 'wouldn't touch ... with a bargepole' developed in British English in the 19th century.

Initially, it meant 'a long pole used to propel or steer a barge'; over time it also acquired the figurative meaning 'a thing used as a metaphorical measure of distance or avoidance', as in refusing to touch something.