'romance-averse' is a modern English compound formed from 'romance' and 'averse'. 'romance' originates from Old French, specifically the word 'romanz', where it originally referred to narratives in the vernacular; 'averse' originates from Latin, specifically the word 'aversus', where 'a-'/'ab-' meant 'away' and 'vertere' meant 'to turn'.

'romance' changed from Old French 'romanz' (vernacular tale) and through Middle English came to include notions of love and chivalry, eventually becoming the modern English 'romance'. 'averse' came from Latin 'aversus' (past participle of 'avertere'), passed into Late Latin/Anglo-Latin usage and then Middle English before becoming the modern English 'averse'.

Initially, 'romance' meant 'a vernacular narrative' and later broadened to mean 'love affair' or 'romantic love', while 'averse' originally meant 'turned away' and evolved into the modern sense 'disinclined or opposed to'.