'earthworm-like' originates from English, specifically formed from 'earthworm' + the suffix '-like', where 'earth' (Old English 'eorþe') meant 'ground' and 'worm' (Old English 'wyrm') meant 'serpent' or 'creeping creature', and '-like' ultimately comes from Old English '-lic' meaning 'similar to'.

'earthworm' changed from Old English compounds such as 'eorðwyrm' (a combination of 'eorþe' + 'wyrm') and eventually became the modern English word 'earthworm'; the suffix '-like' developed from Old English '-lic' via Middle English forms (e.g. '-lich') into Modern English '-like'.

Initially, the element 'wyrm' often meant 'serpent' or large reptile; over time 'worm' narrowed to mean small, legless invertebrates, so the compound now conveys 'resembling an earthworm'.