'auxotrophic' originates from Greek-derived combining forms, specifically 'auxo-' from Greek 'auxein' (αὐξείν) meaning 'to increase, grow' and '-trophic' from Greek 'trophē' (τροφή) meaning 'nourishment', assembled in modern scientific English.

'auxotrophic' developed from the noun 'auxotrophy' (formed in scientific usage in the late 19th to early 20th century) which itself was coined from the Greek combining forms 'auxo-' + 'trophy'; the adjective was formed by adding the adjectival suffix '-ic' to create 'auxotrophic'.

Initially formed from roots meaning 'growth' and 'nourishment', the term came to be used specifically in biology to describe organisms that require external nutritional factors because they cannot synthesize them, a narrower technical sense than the original root meanings.