'antro-nasal' originates from Latin and Greek elements, specifically the Latin word 'antrum' (from Greek 'antron'), where 'antron' meant 'cave' or 'cavity', and the Latin word 'nasalis' (from 'nasus'), where 'nasus' meant 'nose'.

'antrum' changed from the Greek word 'antron' into the Latin 'antrum' and later formed the combining form 'antro-' in medical/Neo-Latin use; 'nasal' changed from Latin 'nasalis' through Old French and Middle English into the modern English word 'nasal'. These elements combined to form the compound adjective 'antro-nasal'.

Initially, the components meant 'cavity' (antrum/antron) and 'nose' (nasus/nasalis); over time they have combined in medical English to mean 'relating to the antrum and the nasal cavity'.