'carbohydrate-based' is a modern English compound formed by combining the noun 'carbohydrate' and the adjective-forming element '-based' (meaning 'having as a base'). 'Carbohydrate' itself comes from scientific usage referring to compounds of carbon and water.

'carbohydrate' was coined in the 19th century from phrases like the French 'hydrate de carbone' (literally 'hydrate of carbon') and the German 'Kohlenhydrat'; these in turn derive from Latin/Greek roots 'carbo' (Latin, 'charcoal' or 'carbon') and Greek 'hydor' (ὕδωρ, 'water'). The compound adjective 'carbohydrate-based' arose later in English as the pattern 'X-based' became common to indicate composition or foundation.

Initially, 'carbohydrate' meant a chemical 'hydrate of carbon' (a class of organic compounds); over time it became the general term for sugars, starches, and related molecules important in nutrition. 'Carbohydrate-based' developed to mean 'having carbohydrates as the principal component or basis' in both scientific and everyday contexts.