'asteriate' originates from Greek, specifically the word 'aster' (ἀστήρ), where 'aster' meant 'star', combined with the Latin-derived suffix '-ate' (from Latin '-atus') used to form verbs/adjectives.

'asteriate' is a Modern English/New Latin formation combining the Greek root 'aster-' with the suffix '-ate'; the past/adjectival form 'asteriated' was formed by regular English verb inflection.

Initially the root referred simply to 'star'; over time the formed verb/adjective came to mean 'marked or decorated with star shapes'.