The ch in architect is said as a k, and that is the tell: it transliterates the Greek letter chi. The word is arkhi-, "chief," plus tekton, "builder, carpenter" — a master builder, a director of works. English took it in the 1560s from French architecte, which had it from Latin architectus, which had it from Greek. Every stage kept the ch spelling, and English kept the k sound to go with it, which is why architect, chorus, chemistry and echo all behave differently from church and cheese.
What makes the word a good illustration is the native alternative it replaced. Old English had no need to borrow: it built heahcræftiga, "high-crafter," as a direct translation of the Latin. Middle English tried architectour, "superintendent." Both lost, and the Greek compound won — which is roughly what happened to English technical vocabulary as a whole between 1500 and 1700.
architect (n.) "person skilled in the art of building, one who plans and designs buildings and supervises their construction," 1560s, from French architecte , from Latin architectus , from Greek arkhitekton "master builder, director of works," from arkhi- "chief" (see archon ) + tekton "builder, carpenter" (from PIE root *teks- "to weave," also "to fabricate"). Old English used heahcræftiga "high-crafter" as a loan-translation of Latin architectus . Middle English had architectour "superintendent." Extended sense of "one who plans or contrives" anything is from 1580s. also from 1560s