'right-winger' originates from English, specifically formed from the word 'right' + the word 'wing' + the agent suffix '-er'.

'right' comes from Old English 'riht' meaning 'straight' or 'correct'; 'wing' comes from Old English (from Proto-Germanic) meaning 'a projecting part or side'; the political phrase 'right wing' arose in the early 19th century (influenced by French 'la droite') to denote the conservative side in assemblies, and 'right-winger' developed as the agent noun meaning a person of the 'right wing'.

Originally describing a spatial 'right side', the term shifted in political contexts to denote conservative positions ('the right'); over time 'right-winger' came to mean a supporter of those conservative positions and, in some contexts, an advocate of more extreme right-wing views.