'superspreader' is a modern English compound formed from the prefix 'super-' (from Latin 'super', meaning 'above' or 'beyond') and 'spreader', the agentive form of the verb 'spread' (from Old English 'sprēdan'/'spreadan').

'spread' evolved from Old English 'spreadan' meaning 'to stretch out, extend'; the agentive suffix '-er' formed 'spreader'. The prefix 'super-' (Latin) combined with 'spreader' in recent English usage to create the compound 'superspreader', with the epidemiological sense becoming common in the late 20th and early 21st centuries (widely used during outbreaks such as SARS and COVID-19).

Originally, 'spread' primarily meant 'to stretch out or extend'; over time it acquired senses including 'to disseminate' or 'transmit' (e.g., disease). The compound 'superspreader' developed recently to denote an agent (person or event) that spreads infection to an unusually large number of others.