'nutrient-supplying' originates from English compound elements 'nutrient' and 'supplying'. 'nutrient' ultimately derives from Latin, specifically from 'nutrire' meaning 'to nourish' (via Late Latin 'nutriens'/'nutrient-'). 'supplying' derives from Latin 'supplēre' (via Old French and Middle English), where 'sub-/sup-' meant 'under/toward' and 'plēre' meant 'to fill'.

'nutrient' developed from Latin 'nutrire' → Late Latin 'nutriens'/'nutrient-' → borrowed into English as 'nutrient'. 'supplying' developed from Latin 'supplēre' → Old French (supplyer) → Middle English 'supplyen' → modern English 'supply' + gerund suffix '-ing'; the compound 'nutrient-supplying' is a modern adjectival formation combining these elements.

Initially the roots meant 'to nourish' (nutrire) and 'to fill/complete' (supplēre). Over time, the combined modern formation came to mean specifically 'providing nutrients' or 'supplying nourishment'.