'anti-tragic' originates from Greek and English combining forms: the prefix 'anti-' (from Greek 'anti') meaning 'against' and 'tragic' (from Greek 'tragikos' via Latin and Old French), where 'tragikos' related to 'tragōidia' originally meaning 'goat-song'.

'anti-tragic' is a modern English compound formed by combining Greek-derived 'anti-' with English 'tragic'. 'Tragic' entered English from Old French 'tragique' and Latin 'tragicus', ultimately from Greek 'tragikos' (from 'tragōidia'). The compound form arose in modern literary criticism (19th–20th century) to describe attitudes or techniques opposing tragedy.

Initially, components meant 'against' (anti-) and referred to 'tragedy' rooted in Greek theatre ('goat-song'); the compound came to mean 'against or not showing tragic qualities' and later gained a more specialized sense in criticism as 'subverting tragic conventions'.