'anticyclic' originates from Greek and Modern English elements: specifically the prefix 'anti-' (Greek 'anti') and the adjective 'cyclic' (from Greek 'kyklikos'), where 'anti-' meant 'against' and 'kyklos' meant 'circle' (or 'wheel').

'anticyclic' was formed in modern English by combining 'anti-' with 'cyclic' (the latter coming into English via Latin/Greek roots such as 'kyklos'/'kyklikos'); the compound has appeared in technical and economic usage and also as the variant 'anticyclical'.

Initially the components conveyed literally 'against a circle' or 'against a cycle'; over time the compound evolved to mean 'opposed to or out of phase with a cycle' and, in economics, 'acting counter to the business cycle'.