'anisophyllia' originates from New Latin (used in botanical formation), ultimately from Greek, specifically the elements 'anisos' and 'phyllon', where 'anisos' meant 'unequal' and 'phyllon' meant 'leaf'.

'anisophyllia' derives from the Greek phrase 'anisos phyllon' ('unequal leaf'), was formed into New Latin botanical usage as 'anisophyllia', and was adopted into modern English botanical vocabulary with the same form and sense.

Initially it meant 'unequal leaf(s)' in Greek-derived botanical descriptions, and over time it has retained that specific meaning of 'having unequal leaves' in modern usage.