'world-embracing' originates from Modern English as a compound of 'world' + the present-participle form 'embracing' (from the verb 'embrace'). 'World' traces back to Old English 'weoruld' (from Proto-Germanic *weraldiz), and 'embrace' comes from Old French 'embracer' (from em- + brace 'arm').

'world-embracing' was formed in Modern English by combining the noun 'world' (Old English 'weoruld' → Middle English 'world') with the verbal element 'embracing' (from Old French 'embracer' → Middle English 'embracen'), yielding a compound adjective meaning literally 'embracing the world' and later used metaphorically.

Originally the root 'embrace' had the literal sense 'to clasp in the arms'; over time 'world-embracing' shifted from a possible literal image of holding the world to a primarily figurative meaning: 'inclusive of or welcoming to the whole world.'