'non-anthophagous' originates from a combination of the negation prefix 'non-' (from Latin 'non', meaning 'not') and the element 'anthophagous' (from Greek roots). 'anthophagous' itself comes from Greek 'anthos' meaning 'flower' and 'phagein' meaning 'to eat'.

'anthophagous' is formed from Greek 'anthophagos' (flower-eating) and was adopted into New/Scientific Latin and English as a technical biological term; the English negative prefix 'non-' was later attached to create 'non-anthophagous' for describing organisms that do not feed on flowers.

Initially the Greek-derived element meant 'flower-eating' ('anthophagous'); over time 'anthophagous' became a technical biological term for organisms that feed on flowers, and 'non-anthophagous' developed as the straightforward negation meaning 'not flower-eating'.