'benzopyridine' originates from modern chemical nomenclature, specifically by combining the prefix 'benzo-' (from 'benzene') with 'pyridine' (the name of the nitrogen-containing ring).

'benzopyridine' was formed in chemical literature by fusing the name 'benzo-' (used to indicate derivation from benzene) with 'pyridine' (from the classical name for the nitrogen heterocycle); the two parts were joined to denote a fused-ring system now called 'benzopyridine'.

Initially, the components 'benzo-' and 'pyridine' referred separately to a benzene-derived portion and the pyridine ring; over time their concatenation came to denote the single fused-ring structure 'benzopyridine' used in modern organic chemistry.