Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease is considered a common hepatic manifestation of metabolic syndrome. With respect to the pathogenesis of liver steatosis and non-alcoholic steatohepatitis, recently a consensus of international experts proposed a change in the name of the disease to metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD). The new name should not only better reflect the pathogenesis, but also better stratify risks of the patients treatment and eliminate stigmatization originating from the presence of the term "alcohol" in the name of the disease. This work also emphasizes the common pathophysiological mechanisms involved in both metabolic syndrome and liver steatosis, such as dyslipidemia, insulin resistance, gut dysbiosis, oxidative stress, genetic, epigenetic and hormonal factors.