'men-led' originates from English, combining the plural noun 'men' (plural of 'man') and the past participle 'led' of the verb 'lead'; 'men' ultimately comes from Old English 'menn' where the root referred to adult males, and 'led' comes from Old English 'lǣdan' meaning 'to guide' or 'to lead'.

'men' developed from Old English 'menn' (plural of 'mann') and ultimately from Proto-Germanic '*mann-'; 'led' is the past participle form of Old English 'lǣdan' (to guide), which evolved into Middle English forms and the modern verb 'lead', giving the compound 'men-led' in contemporary usage.

Initially it was a literal combination meaning 'led by men'; over time the compound has been used descriptively to indicate organizational or social dominance by men and sometimes to imply gender imbalance.