'anion-bearing' originates from Modern English as a compound of 'anion' + 'bearing'. 'Anion' itself originates from New Latin/Greek-derived coinage 'anion', where Greek 'anienai' (or related root 'an-') meant 'to go up' (reflecting movement toward the anode in early electrochemistry).

'anion' was coined in scientific usage in the 19th century (in the context of electrolysis and ionic theory) and entered English scientific vocabulary; the compound 'anion-bearing' formed later in Modern English by combining 'anion' with the participial adjective 'bearing'.

Initially, 'anion' denoted a particle that moves toward the anode in electrolysis; over time the term came to mean a negatively charged ion in general, and 'anion-bearing' evolved to mean 'containing or carrying negative ions'.