'aphid-associated' originates from Modern English, formed as a compound of the noun 'aphid' (from New Latin 'Aphid-' ultimately from Greek 'aphis', meaning 'aphid') and the past-participle adjective 'associated' (from Latin 'associare' via Old French/Latin-derived forms).

'aphid' comes into English via New Latin from Greek 'aphis'; 'associate/associated' comes from Latin 'associare' ('ad-' + 'sociare', to join with) and passed into English through Old French/Medieval Latin influences. The hyphenated compound 'aphid-associated' is a modern English formation combining these elements to create a descriptive adjective.

Individually, 'aphid' originally named the insect and 'associated' originally meant 'joined or connected'; together as 'aphid-associated' the compound came to mean 'connected with or occurring in relation to aphids' in modern scientific and descriptive usage.