'non-ether-linked' originates from modern English, specifically formed by the negative prefix 'non-' + 'ether' + the past-participle adjective 'linked', where 'non-' meant 'not' and 'ether' referred to the chemical functional group 'ether'.

'ether' derives ultimately from Greek 'aithēr' (αἰθήρ) meaning 'upper air' or 'pure, fresh air'; in the 18th–19th centuries the term was adopted in chemistry to name the solvent 'ether'. 'linked' is the past participle of 'link' (Old English and Germanic roots for connection), and the compound 'ether-linked' was formed in modern chemical nomenclature to describe connections via ether bonds; adding 'non-' created the negated descriptive phrase 'non-ether-linked'.

Initially, 'ether' referred to aether or the upper/tenuous air in classical language, but over time it became the name of a specific chemical class; the compound phrase 'non-ether-linked' is a modern technical descriptor meaning 'not joined by ether bonds'.