'antigravitropic' originates from Modern English, specifically formed from the prefix 'anti-' (from Greek 'anti' meaning 'against') and 'gravitropic', where 'gravi-' comes via Latin 'gravis' meaning 'heavy' (relating to gravity) and '-tropic' from Greek 'tropos' meaning 'turn' or 'response'.

'gravitropic' developed from 'gravity' + the adjectival/response-forming suffix '-tropic'; 'gravity' itself comes from Latin 'gravitas' meaning 'weight' and entered English via Old French and Middle English. The compound 'anti-' + 'gravitropic' produced the modern technical adjective 'antigravitropic'.

Initially components referred to 'against' + 'turning/response to weight'; over time the compound came to be used specifically in biology to mean 'growing or moving away from the direction of gravity'.