'antimony-bearing' is a compound formed from the noun 'antimony' + the present-participle/suffix 'bearing' (from verb 'bear'). 'antimony' originates from Old French 'antimoine' via Medieval Latin 'antimonium', ultimately influenced by Arabic 'al-ithmid' (the name for stibnite), and 'bearing' comes from Old English 'beran' meaning 'to carry, to bear'.

'antimony' changed from Old French 'antimoine' and Medieval Latin 'antimonium' into the modern English 'antimony'; 'bearing' developed from Old English 'beran' to the present participle 'bearing' used in compounds (e.g., 'ore-bearing'). The compound form 'antimony-bearing' is a modern descriptive formation using the participial '-bearing'.

Initially, components meant 'antimony' (the mineral/name) and 'bearing' as 'carrying' or 'containing'; over time the compound came to be used specifically in geology and metallurgy to mean 'containing antimony' in a material (e.g., ore).