'antivibration' originates from Modern English, formed by combining the prefix 'anti-' (from Greek 'antí', meaning 'against') and the noun 'vibration' (from Latin 'vibratio', from 'vibrare', meaning 'to shake').

'vibration' comes from Latin 'vibratio' (from the verb 'vibrare'), passed into French and Middle English as 'vibration'; the prefix 'anti-' comes from Greek 'antí'. The compound 'antivibration' is a modern English formation used in industrial and engineering contexts from the 20th century onward.

Initially the components literally meant 'against shaking'; over time the compound came to refer specifically to devices, materials, or design features that reduce or prevent vibration rather than a purely literal opposition to shaking.