'arthrospore' originates from Greek, specifically the elements 'arthron' meaning 'joint' and 'spora' meaning 'seed' or 'spore'.

'arthrospore' is a modern formation from New Latin/Neo‑Greek combining Greek roots (compare New Latin 'arthrospora') that was adopted into English scientific terminology in the 19th century.

Initially it referred generally to a 'jointed spore' (a spore at a joint or formed by segmentation); over time it came to denote specifically the spores produced by fragmentation of hyphae (arthroconidia) used for reproduction or survival.