'neutrophil-related' is a compound formed from 'neutrophil' + the adjective-forming element 'related'. 'neutrophil' itself comes from the element 'neutro-' (from Latin 'neuter' meaning 'neither' or 'neutral', via Modern Latin) combined with Greek-derived suffix '-phil' (from 'philos' meaning 'loving' or 'having an affinity for'), originally referring to cells that stain readily with neutral dyes. 'related' comes from the verb 'relate', from Latin 'referre/relatus' meaning 'to bring back/connected'.

'neutrophil' was coined in Modern scientific Latin/English in the 19th century to name a type of granulocyte that takes up neutral (neither acidic nor basic) stains; over time this became the English scientific term 'neutrophil'. 'related' developed from Old French/Latin roots and became the English adjective 'related' meaning 'connected to'. The compound 'neutrophil-related' is a modern descriptive formation used in biomedical contexts.

Initially, 'neutrophil' referred specifically to cells showing affinity for neutral dyes; over time it came to denote the specific cell type (neutrophil) itself. 'Related' originally meant 'brought back' or 'referred' in Latin but evolved to mean 'connected' or 'associated', and the compound now means 'connected with neutrophils'.