Y'know... this made me go researching. Sadly, I don't have an OED subscription available to me, but dictionary.reference.com seems to be helping.
'aspersion' leads to the verb 'asperse' ("1. to attack with false, malicious, and damaging charges or insinuations; slander. 2. to sprinkle; bespatter. Origin: 1480–90; < L aspersus besprinkled (ptp. of aspergere), equiv. to a- a- 5 + -sper- (comb. form of spar-, var. of sparg- sparge ) + -sus, var. of -tus ptp. suffix
Following those roots gives:
a- 5 var. of ad-, used: (1) before sc, sp, st (ascend) and (2) in words of French derivation (often with the sense of increase, addition): amass. Origin: ME, in some words < MF a- < L ad- prefix or ad prep. (see ad- ), as in abut; in others < L a- (var. of ad- ad- ), as in ascend
and
sparge –verb (used with object), verb (used without object) 1. to scatter or sprinkle. –noun 2. a sprinkling. Origin: 1550–60; < L spargere to sprinkle, scatter
... So... then on to the 'com' prefix: a prefix meaning “with,” “together,” “in association,” and (with intensive force) “completely,” occurring in loanwords from Latin (commit): used in the formation of compound words before b, p, m: combine; compare; commingle. Also, co-, col-, con-, cor-.
Origin: < L, var. of prep. cum with
Put it all together and you get a word which SHOULD be 'comspersion', but I can accept that 'msp' is a bit unruly, and which means 'with sprinkling' or 'in association with spattering'... which sounds like some of both the better and the worse sex I've had, and like the group dynamics of too many poly situations I've seen and/or been in. ;)
no subject
'aspersion' leads to the verb 'asperse' ("1. to attack with false, malicious, and damaging charges or insinuations; slander.
2. to sprinkle; bespatter.
Origin:
1480–90; < L aspersus besprinkled (ptp. of aspergere), equiv. to a- a- 5 + -sper- (comb. form of spar-, var. of sparg- sparge ) + -sus, var. of -tus ptp. suffix
Following those roots gives:
a- 5
var. of ad-, used: (1) before sc, sp, st (ascend) and (2) in words of French derivation (often with the sense of increase, addition): amass.
Origin:
ME, in some words < MF a- < L ad- prefix or ad prep. (see ad- ), as in abut; in others < L a- (var. of ad- ad- ), as in ascend
and
sparge
–verb (used with object), verb (used without object)
1. to scatter or sprinkle.
–noun
2. a sprinkling.
Origin:
1550–60; < L spargere to sprinkle, scatter
...
So... then on to the 'com' prefix:
a prefix meaning “with,” “together,” “in association,” and (with intensive force) “completely,” occurring in loanwords from Latin (commit): used in the formation of compound words before b, p, m: combine; compare; commingle.
Also, co-, col-, con-, cor-.
Origin:
< L, var. of prep. cum with
Put it all together and you get a word which SHOULD be 'comspersion', but I can accept that 'msp' is a bit unruly, and which means 'with sprinkling' or 'in association with spattering'... which sounds like some of both the better and the worse sex I've had, and like the group dynamics of too many poly situations I've seen and/or been in. ;)