'non-amylolytic' is formed from the prefix 'non-' meaning 'not' and 'amylolytic', which comes from 'amylum' (Latin for 'starch') and '-lytic' (from Greek 'lytikos', meaning 'able to loosen or dissolve').

'amylolytic' comes from the combination of 'amylum' and '-lytic', and the prefix 'non-' was added in modern scientific English to indicate the absence of this property, resulting in 'non-amylolytic'.

Initially, 'amylolytic' meant 'able to break down starch', and 'non-amylolytic' was coined to mean 'not able to break down starch', which is its current meaning.