'nonsmoking' originates from combining the prefix 'non-' from Latin, specifically the word 'non', where 'non' meant 'not', and the present participle 'smoking' from Old English roots for 'smoke' (e.g. 'smoc'/'smoca'), where that root meant 'smoke'.

'nonsmoking' evolved as a compound of 'non-' + 'smoking'. In early modern usage it often appeared as two words ('non smoking') or hyphenated ('non-smoking'); over the 20th century the hyphenated and closed forms ('non-smoking' and 'nonsmoking') became common in written English to serve as an adjective or noun.

Initially it simply meant 'not smoking' (the act or state of not smoking); over time it became commonly used as an adjective or noun to label places, sections, or policies that prohibit smoking (i.e., 'designating areas where smoking is prohibited').