'small-government-leaning' originates from Modern English, formed by compounding the adjectives/nouns 'small' + 'government' with the present-participial adjective 'leaning' (from 'lean').

'government' comes via Old French 'governer' from Latin 'gubernare'; 'lean' comes from Old English/West Germanic roots meaning 'to incline' (Old English 'hlinian' or related forms); 'small' comes from Old English 'smael' meaning 'thin, little', and the three elements were combined in Modern English into the compound adjective 'small-government-leaning'.

Initially the parts referred separately to size ('small'), to the institution ('government'), and to inclination ('lean(ing)'). Over time the compound came to denote a political stance: 'favoring smaller government'.