'autoelectrolytic' originates from Greek and New Latin elements: the prefix 'auto-' from Greek 'autos' meaning 'self', combined with 'electrolytic', which comes via Modern Latin from 'electrolysis' (from Greek 'elektron' meaning 'amber' and Greek 'lysis' meaning 'loosening' or 'dissolution').

'autoelectrolytic' is a modern scientific formation, produced by combining the Ancient Greek-derived prefix 'auto-' with the 19th-century technical adjective 'electrolytic' (attested after the coining of 'electrolysis'); the compound arose in technical literature in the 20th century to describe self-driven electrochemical decomposition.

Originally, 'electrolytic' pertained simply to processes involving electrolysis; with the addition of 'auto-' the meaning specialized to denote electrolysis that is self-generated or occurring without an external electrolytic driver, i.e., 'self-causing electrolysis.'