'sialylate' originates from modern biochemical coinage, built from the combining form 'sialyl-' (from 'sialic', relating to sialic acid) plus the chemical suffix '-ate'. 'sialic' ultimately comes from Greek 'sialon' meaning 'saliva'.

'sialyl-' appeared in 20th-century biochemical literature (from terms like 'sialic acid'); the verb-form 'sialylate' and derived forms such as 'sialylating' were formed in modern scientific English to denote addition of sialic acid residues.

Initially related to 'saliva' (Greek origin), the term evolved in scientific usage to refer specifically to molecules bearing or modified by sialic acid residues; today it denotes the biochemical action of adding those residues.