'anti-school' originates from a combination of the prefix 'anti-' and the noun 'school'; 'anti-' comes from Greek, specifically the element 'anti-' where 'anti-' meant 'against', and 'school' comes from Old English 'scolu' (via Latin 'schola' and Greek 'skholē').

'school' changed from Greek 'skholē' (originally meaning 'leisure, lecture') to Latin 'schola', then to Old English 'scolu' and Middle English 'scole', eventually becoming the modern English word 'school'; 'anti-' was borrowed into English via Latin/Greek compounds and has been used productively to form compounds like 'anti-school' in modern English.

Initially the parts meant 'against' + 'school' (literally 'against school'); over time the compound has been used to describe attitudes, movements, or policies that oppose formal schooling or criticize the school system.