'godlikeness' is formed in Modern English from the compound elements 'god' + 'likeness', where 'god' denotes 'deity' and 'likeness' comes from Old English 'lícnes(s)' meaning 'form, resemblance'.

'god' was already present in Old English as 'god', while 'likeness' evolved from Old English 'lícnes(s)' through Middle English 'liknes'/'likeness'; the compound 'godlikeness' developed by combining 'godlike' (from 'god' + 'like') with the noun-forming suffix '-ness' in later English.

Initially the elements conveyed straightforwardly 'resemblance to God' or 'having the form of God'; over time the compound has retained that core sense and is used both theologically (divinity) and descriptively (godlike resemblance).