'subapicalize' originates from Latin elements: the prefix 'sub-' meaning 'under', combined with 'apex' (Latin 'apex') meaning 'summit' or 'tip', and the English verb-forming suffix '-ize' (from Greek '-izein' via Latin/Old French).

'subapicalize' was formed in Modern English by adding the productive verbal suffix '-ize' to the adjective 'subapical' (itself from 'sub-' + 'apical'), following common English word-formation patterns.

Originally terms like 'subapical' described position ('below the apex'); with '-ize' attached, the meaning shifted to an action: 'to make or place below the apex.'