The word 'undoing' is a transparent compound formed from native English elements. Its core logic is built upon the verb 'do', a fundamental Germanic word with Proto-Indo-European roots meaning "to place" or "to put," which evolved to signify any act of performance. The prefix 'un-', also of ancient Germanic lineage, was commonly attached to verbs to indicate reversal, as seen in 'unlock' or 'untie'. The suffix '-ing', used to form verbal nouns (gerunds), completes the construction. Thus, the literal meaning "the act of reversing a deed" evolved naturally into the figurative sense of a catastrophic reversal—the cause of one's ruin—as one's actions are metaphorically unraveled with disastrous consequences.

Structure: un (reversal) + do (act) + ing (noun suffix) - un: A prefix of Germanic origin (Old English un-, on-), meaning "reversal, removal, or opposite of an action." - do: A verb root of Germanic origin (Old English dōn), meaning "to act, perform, or execute." - ing: A suffix of Germanic origin (Old English -ung, -ing), forming nouns of action or result.