'baal shem' originates from Hebrew, specifically the words 'ba'al' (בעל) where 'ba\'al' meant 'master' or 'owner' and 'shem' (שם) where 'shem' meant 'name'.

'baal shem' changed through Yiddish and rabbinic use (appearing in names such as 'Baal Shem Tov') and was adopted into English as 'baal shem' and sometimes written as the combined form 'baalshem'.

Initially, it meant 'master of the name'—a person skilled in the use of the (divine) name; over time it became a conventional title for certain Jewish holy men and mystics, particularly in Eastern European Hasidic contexts.