'nonteleological' originates from English, formed by the prefix 'non-' (meaning 'not') combined with 'teleological', where 'teleological' ultimately derives from Greek 'telos' (meaning 'end, purpose') plus Greek 'logos' (meaning 'reason, word') via Late Latin/modern scientific formation.

'teleological' developed from Greek components 'telos' + 'logos' into Medieval/Latin formations such as 'teleologia' and entered English as 'teleology' in the 17th–18th centuries; the adjective 'teleological' followed, and the negative prefix 'non-' was productively attached in modern English to form 'nonteleological'.

Initially related to the Greek sense of 'concerning ends' or 'study of ends', 'teleological' came to mean 'explaining phenomena by reference to purposes or final causes'; 'nonteleological' later emerged to denote the opposite stance—explaining without reference to purposes.