'starch-resistant' is a compound formed from the noun 'starch' and the adjective 'resistant'. 'starch' originates from Old English 'stearc' meaning 'stiff'; 'resistant' originates from Latin 'resistere' (via Old French 'résister'), where 're-' meant 'again' and 'sistere' (or 'stare' roots) meant 'to stand'.

'starch' changed from Old English 'stearc' to Middle English 'starch' and became the modern English 'starch'; 'resistant' derived from Latin 'resistere' → Old French 'résistant' → modern English 'resistant', and the compound 'starch-resistant' is formed by productive modern English compounding.

Initially, 'starch' primarily conveyed 'stiffness' and the substance causing it; over time it came to refer to the carbohydrate used as a stiffening agent, while 'resistant' originally meant 'standing back' and evolved to mean 'not affected by' or 'able to withstand', producing the current sense 'not affected by starch'.