'anticamera' originates from Italian, specifically the word 'anticamera', where 'ante/anti-' meant 'before' and 'camera' meant 'chamber'.

'anticamera' derived from Latin elements like 'ante' + 'camera' (camera from Late Latin/Greek kamára), passed into Italian as 'anticamera', and was later borrowed into English with little change.

Initially, it meant 'a room before a chamber', and over time it has retained this basic sense as 'a small room leading to a main room (anteroom)'.