'multi-way' originates from the combining form 'multi-' (from Latin 'multus') and English 'way' (from Old English 'weg'), where 'multus' meant 'many' and 'weg' meant 'road or path'.

'multi-' entered English via Medieval Latin and Old French as a combining form meaning 'many', while 'way' evolved from Old English 'weg' to Middle English forms (e.g. 'wei') and then to Modern English 'way'; the modern compound 'multi-way' arose in Modern English usage (notably 19th–20th century) by concatenating the prefix and noun.

Initially the components meant 'many' and 'road/path' separately, but over time the compound came to mean 'having or involving several methods, routes, or directions', and later acquired technical senses (e.g., switches or speakers that operate across multiple channels).