'antecolic' originates from Latin and Greek, specifically the Latin prefix 'ante-' and the Greek word 'kolon' (via Latin 'colon'), where 'ante-' meant 'before' and 'kolon' meant 'colon (large intestine)'.

'antecolic' was formed in medical Neo-Latin by combining 'ante-' + forms of 'colon' (e.g. Neo-Latin 'antecolicus') and entered English through 19th–20th century medical literature as the adjective 'antecolic'.

Initially it meant 'located before the colon,' and over time this anatomical/surgical sense has remained essentially unchanged in medical usage.