'homostylous' originates from Neo-Latin/Modern Latin, specifically from the Greek elements 'homos' and 'stylos', where 'homos' meant 'same' and 'stylos' meant 'pillar' (used for 'style' in botany).

'homostylous' changed from Neo-Latin formation 'homostylos' (a combination of Greek roots) and was adopted into English botanical terminology as 'homostylous'.

Initially it meant 'having the same style (pillar)',' and over time it has retained this specialized botanical meaning of 'having styles of equal length'.