'anaptotic' originates from Greek, specifically the word 'anaptosis,' where 'ana-' meant 'again' and 'ptosis' meant 'a falling.'

'anaptosis' was adopted into New Latin as 'anaptosis,' and the adjective form 'anaptotic' was created in English to describe words or forms involving vowel insertion.

Initially, it referred specifically to the process of vowel insertion in linguistics, and this meaning has remained consistent in modern usage.