'non-hemolytic' is formed from the negative prefix 'non-' (from Latin 'non', meaning 'not') combined with 'hemolytic', which derives from Greek elements 'haima' ('blood') + 'lytikos' ('able to loosen or dissolve').

'hemolytic' comes via New Latin/medical formation from Greek 'haima' + 'lytikos' into Neo-Latin forms (e.g. 'haemolyticus'), and entered English as 'hemolytic' in medical contexts; the productive English prefix 'non-' was then attached to create 'non-hemolytic'.

Initially, the components referred specifically to 'blood' and 'dissolving/loosening'; the combined term has long meant 'causing dissolution/destruction of red blood cells', and 'non-hemolytic' has consistently meant 'not causing such destruction'.