'sand-averse' originates from English, specifically a compound of the noun 'sand' and the adjective 'averse', where 'sand' meant 'granular particles' and 'averse' ultimately comes from Latin 'aversus' meaning 'turned away'.

'averse' comes from Latin 'aversus' (past participle of 'avertere' meaning 'to turn away'), passed into Old French and Middle English as 'avers'/'averse' and developed into the Modern English adjective 'averse'; 'sand-averse' is a modern English compound combining that adjective with 'sand'.

Initially 'aversus' meant 'turned away' in Latin; over time the sense evolved into 'having a feeling of dislike or opposition', which is preserved in the modern adjective 'averse' and thus in the compound 'sand-averse'.