'adenyl' originates from 'adenosine', specifically the word 'adenosine', where 'aden-' referred to 'gland' and '-osine' is a suffix used in biochemistry.

'adenosine' transformed from the Greek word 'aden', meaning 'gland', and eventually became the modern English word 'adenosine'.

Initially, it meant 'related to glands', but over time it evolved into its current meaning related to nucleic acids.