'anti-centralizer' originates from the prefix 'anti-' (from Greek 'anti') meaning 'against', combined with the English agent-forming element 'centralizer' (from 'centralize' + '-er'), where 'central' ultimately traces to Latin 'centrum' (via French and Latin), originally from Greek 'kentron' meaning 'center'.

'anti-' has been used in English since classical/early modern periods as a productive prefix meaning 'against'; 'centralize' entered English via French 'centraliser' and Latin/French roots in the 18th–19th centuries, and the agentive compound 'anti-centralizer' is a modern English formation (20th century onward) created by combining 'anti-' with the agent noun 'centralizer'.

Initially the components conveyed 'against' + 'one who centralizes'; assembled as 'anti-centralizer' it has meant 'one who opposes centralization' since its formation, with little semantic shift beyond context-specific nuances (political, administrative, economic).