The word 'strict' entered English in the late 16th century, directly from the Latin strictus, meaning 'drawn tight, compressed, rigorous'. This Latin term derives from the past participle of the verb stringere, 'to draw tight, bind, or contract'. The underlying Proto-Indo-European root is thought to be strenk-, meaning 'tight, narrow'. The semantic journey from the physical act of tightening or binding to the abstract concept of rigorous adherence to rules is a classic example of metaphorical extension, where the constraint of a physical bond evolves into the constraint of behavior or procedure.

The word 'strict' is a simplex word borrowed into English as a whole unit. Its core is the Latin root strict-, the past participle stem of stringere, meaning 'to draw tight, bind, tighten'. In English, it functions as a complete adjective.