'aspersive' originates from Latin, specifically the word 'aspergere', where 'ad-' (in some analyses) meant 'to' and 'spargere' meant 'to sprinkle; scatter'.

'aspergere' gave Late Latin 'aspersio' (a sprinkling), which produced Old French/Medieval usages related to 'aspersion' ('a sprinkling' and later 'a slander'). Middle English adopted 'asperse' (to besmirch), and English later formed the adjective 'aspersive' and the adverb 'aspersively'.

Initially, it referred to the physical act 'to sprinkle' or 'a sprinkling', but over time it evolved figuratively to mean 'to cast slander or defame'; the modern sense of 'aspersively' is typically 'slanderously' or 'disparagingly'.