'bacteriuria' originates from combining forms from Greek/modern medical Latin: 'bacterio-' from Greek 'bakterion' meaning 'small staff' or 'rod', and '-uria' from Greek 'ouron' meaning 'urine'.

'bacteriuria' was formed in modern medical terminology by joining the Greek-derived combining form 'bacterio-' with the suffix '-uria' to denote a condition of the urine; it entered English usage as a clinical term in the 20th century.

Initially it strictly described the finding 'bacteria in the urine'; over time it has been used both for symptomatic urinary infections and for asymptomatic bacterial presence, with clinical context determining significance.