'autoroute' originates from French, specifically the word 'autoroute', where 'auto-' meant 'automobile' and 'route' meant 'road'.

'autoroute' was formed in modern French by combining 'auto-' and 'route' in the 20th century; the term was adopted into English largely unchanged as 'autoroute' to denote continental motorways.

Initially, it meant 'a road for automobiles'; over time it came to denote specifically high-speed, often limited-access motorways (particularly those in France).