'hornblende-free' originates from English compound formation combining 'hornblende' and 'free'. 'hornblende' originates from German, specifically the word 'Hornblende', where 'Horn' meant 'horn' and 'Blende' meant 'a deceptive appearance' (a miner's term applied to certain minerals).

'hornblende' was borrowed into English from German 'Hornblende' (from Middle High German elements 'horn' + 'blende'), and the modern compound 'hornblende-free' was formed in geological English to denote the absence of that mineral.

Initially, 'hornblende' designated the dark amphibole mineral; combining it with the English suffix/adjective 'free' created a descriptive term meaning 'without hornblende', and this basic meaning has remained stable in geological usage.