'chemogenesis' originates from a modern scientific formation combining the prefix 'chemo-' (from Greek 'χημεία' / 'chemeia', meaning 'alchemy, chemical') and the noun 'genesis' (from Greek 'γένεσις'), where 'chemo-' meant 'chemical' and 'genesis' meant 'origin, birth'.

'genesis' entered English via Latin and Old French from Greek 'γένεσις', while the productive prefix 'chemo-' arose in modern scientific usage in the 19th–20th centuries; these elements were combined to form the modern English term 'chemogenesis'.

Initially it meant 'origin or production by chemical processes', and over time this core meaning has been retained, now often applied specifically to hypotheses about the chemical origins of life and synthesis of organic compounds.