'stamen-like' originates from Modern English as a compound of 'stamen' and the suffix '-like', where 'stamen' comes from Latin 'stamen' meaning 'warp, thread' and the suffix '-like' (from Old English 'līc') meant 'similar to, having the form of'.

'stamen' was borrowed from Latin 'stamen' (originally 'warp, thread'), later adopted into New/Modern Latin and botanical usage to denote the male reproductive organ of a flower; the Old English element 'līc' evolved into the productive Modern English suffix '-like'. These elements combined in Modern English to form the descriptive compound 'stamen-like'.

Initially 'stamen' referred to a 'warp' or 'thread' in Latin; over time it came to denote the male part of a flower (because of its thread- or filament-like form). Combined with '-like', the compound's meaning became 'resembling a stamen'.