'lens-related' originates from modern English as a compound formed from 'lens' and 'related'. 'lens' originates from Latin, specifically the word 'lens', where the root meant 'lentil' (named for the shape). 'related' ultimately comes from Latin 'relatus', the past participle of 'referre', where 're-' meant 'back' and 'ferre' meant 'to carry'.

'lens' entered English via Neo-Latin and Middle English from the Latin word 'lens' ('lentil') and acquired an optical sense in the 16th–17th centuries for glass pieces shaped like lentils; 'related' passed into English via Anglo-French and Middle English forms of Latin 'relatus/relater' and became the modern adjective 'related'. The compound 'lens-related' is a modern (20th-century onward) technical formation used to indicate connection to lenses.

Initially, 'lens' meant 'lentil' (the seed) but later came to mean an optical glass element because of its lentil-like shape; 'related' originally signified 'brought back' or 'connected' in a general sense and evolved into the common adjective meaning 'connected to' or 'pertaining to'. Combined, 'lens-related' now means 'connected to or concerning lenses'.