'recolor' is formed in Modern English by adding the prefix 're-' (from Latin 're-', meaning 'again') to 'color' (from Old French 'colour' / Latin 'color', meaning 'color').

'color' entered Middle English from Old French 'colour', itself from Latin 'color'. The verb 'recolor' is a productive modern formation using the prefix 're-' + 'color'; 'recoloring' is the gerund/nominal form derived from that verb.

Originally the elements meant 'again' (re-) and 'color' (color), and the combined form initially meant 'to color again'; its meaning has broadened to include altering, adjusting, or changing color (not only repeating an earlier coloring).