'asterisk' originates from Greek, specifically the word 'asteriskos', where 'aster-' meant 'star' and the diminutive '-iskos' meant 'little', and the verb sense 'to mark with an asterisk' derives from that noun usage.

'asterisk' passed into Late Latin as 'asteriscus', then into Old French and Middle English, and the modern English verb 'asterisk' (and its forms like 'asterisking') developed from these usages.

Initially, it referred to a 'little star' used as a typographical mark; over time this evolved into the modern sense of marking text or items with that symbol, and then into the verbal/gerund forms expressing the action.