'glycogen-storing' originates from Modern English, formed by combining 'glycogen' and the present‑participle of the verb 'store'. 'Glycogen' itself ultimately derives from Ancient Greek 'glykys' (meaning 'sweet') plus the element '-gen' (meaning 'producing' or 'generator'), while English 'store' comes through Old French and Middle English from older Germanic/Latin-influenced sources meaning 'to put away or supply'.

'glycogen' changed from 19th-century scientific French 'glycogene' into English 'glycogen', and 'store' evolved from Old French/Middle English forms such as 'estorer'/'storen' to modern English 'store'. The compound adjective 'glycogen-storing' arose in modern scientific/medical English by joining the noun 'glycogen' with the participle 'storing'.

Initially the Greek roots referred broadly to 'sweet' (glykys) and 'producing' (-gen); in modern usage 'glycogen' came to name a specific biological polysaccharide, and 'store' narrowed to the sense of putting aside or accumulating material — combined, the compound now specifically denotes 'holding or accumulating glycogen'.