'amine-tolerant' is a modern compound formed from 'amine' + 'tolerant' in English; 'amine' names a class of organic compounds and 'tolerant' means 'able to endure'.

'amine' originates from 19th-century French 'amine' (coined from 'ammonia' with the suffix '-ine'), while 'tolerant' comes from Latin 'tolerans' (present participle of 'tolerare') through Old/Middle French and later English; the compound 'amine-tolerant' emerged in technical and scientific usage in the 20th century to describe resistance to amines.

Initially 'tolerant' meant 'able to bear or endure' in general contexts; in compounds like 'amine-tolerant' it has specialized to mean 'resistant to the effects of' (e.g., chemical or biological effects).