'automan' originates from Modern English, combining the Greek element 'autos' (from Greek 'αὐτός') meaning 'self' and Old English 'mann' meaning 'person'.

'automan' developed as a blend of 'automaton' (from Greek 'automatos', 'self-moving') and English 'man', formed in the 20th century in technological and literary contexts; the plural 'automen' is the regular English plural form.

Initially influenced by the sense of 'automaton' ('self-moving device'), the term came to be used specifically for humanoid, self-operating machines or fictional automated humans; that usage is retained in the modern plural 'automen'.