'anthracene-rich' originates from Modern English, specifically the combination of the chemical name 'anthracene' and the adjective 'rich', where 'anthracene' ultimately comes from Greek 'anthrax' meaning 'coal' (with the chemical suffix '-ene' indicating an unsaturated hydrocarbon) and 'rich' (from Old English rīce/Proto-Germanic *rīkijaz) meant 'abundant' or 'wealthy'.

'anthracene-rich' was formed in modern scientific/technical English by compounding the 19th-century chemical name 'anthracene' (coined from Greek 'anthrax' 'coal' when the compound was isolated from coal-tar) with the long-established English adjective 'rich', producing the compound adjective 'anthracene-rich'.

Initially it described materials 'rich in anthracene' in analytical and descriptive chemistry contexts, and that core meaning remains essentially unchanged in modern usage.