'anti-Catholic' is formed from the prefix 'anti-' (from Greek anti-, meaning 'against') combined with 'Catholic' (from Greek 'katholikos' via Latin 'catholicus'), literally meaning 'against Catholic'.

'Catholic' comes from Greek 'katholikos' ('kathol-' meaning 'general, whole') which passed into Latin as 'catholicus' and into Old French and Middle English before becoming modern English 'Catholic'. The compound 'anti-Catholic' was created in English by combining the prefix 'anti-' with 'Catholic' to describe opposition to the Catholic Church.

Originally used to indicate opposition to the doctrines or political power of the Catholic Church, the term has also come to describe broader social or cultural hostility toward Catholics as people or communities.