'antiseismic' originates from Greek elements: specifically the prefix 'anti-' (from Greek 'anti') and the root 'seismic' (from Greek 'seismos'), where 'anti-' meant 'against' and 'seismos' meant 'earthquake'.

'antiseismic' was formed in modern English by combining the prefix 'anti-' with 'seismic' (which comes from Greek 'seismos' via Latin and other languages), eventually producing the modern English adjective 'antiseismic'.

Initially built from elements meaning 'against' + 'earthquake', its meaning has come to refer specifically to designs or measures that resist or mitigate earthquake effects.