1590s, "a turning away from;" 1650s in the figurative sense of "mental attitude of repugnance or opposition," from French aversion (16c.) and directly from Latin aversionem (nominative aversio), noun of action from past-participle stem of aversus "turned away, backwards, behind, hostile," itself past participle of avertere "to turn away" (see avert). Aversion therapy in psychology is from 1946.
Proto-Indo-European root forming words meaning "to turn, bend."
It forms all or part of: adverse; anniversary; avert; awry; controversy; converge; converse (adj.) "exact opposite;" convert; diverge; divert; evert; extroversion; extrovert; gaiter; introrse; introvert; invert; inward; malversation; obverse; peevish; pervert; prose; raphe; reverberate; revert; rhabdomancy; rhapsody; rhombus; ribald; sinistrorse; stalwart; subvert; tergiversate; transverse; universe; verbena; verge (v.1) "tend, incline;" vermeil; vermicelli; vermicular; vermiform; vermin; versatile; verse (n.) "poetry;" version; verst; versus; vertebra; vertex; vertigo; vervain; vortex; -ward; warp; weird; worm; worry; worth (adj.) "significant, valuable, of value;" worth (v.) "to come to be;" wrangle; wrap; wrath; wreath; wrench; wrest; wrestle; wriggle; wring; wrinkle; wrist; writhe; wrong; wroth; wry.
It is the hypothetical source of/evidence for its existence is provided by: Sanskrit vartate "turns round, rolls;" Avestan varet- "to turn;" Hittite hurki- "wheel;" Greek rhatane "stirrer, ladle;" Latin vertere (frequentative versare) "to turn, turn back, be turned; convert, transform, translate; be changed," versus "turned toward or against;" Old Church Slavonic vrŭteti "to turn, roll," Russian vreteno "spindle, distaff;" Lithuanian verčiu, versti "to turn;" German werden, Old English weorðan "to become;" Old English -weard "toward," originally "turned toward," weorthan "to befall," wyrd "fate, destiny," literally "what befalls one;" Welsh gwerthyd "spindle, distaff;" Old Irish frith "against."
"serving or intended to avert some threatened evil or action," 1580s, from Late Latin deprecatorius, from deprecat-, past-participle stem of deprecari "plead in excuse, avert by prayer," literally "to pray (something) away," from de "away" (see de-) + precari "to pray" (from PIE root *prek- "to ask, entreat").
c. 1500, deprecacioun, "prayer to avert evil, earnest desire for exemption or deliverance," from Old French deprecation and directly from Latin deprecationem (nominative deprecatio) "a warding off or averting by prayer," noun of action from past-participle stem of deprecari "plead in excuse; avert by prayer," literally "to pray (something) away," from de "away" (see de-) + precari "to pray" (from PIE root *prek- "to ask, entreat"). Sense of "disapproval, earnest expression of feeling against" is by 1610s.
1620s, "of poisonous smell, foul, noxious," from Late Latin mephiticus, from Latin mephitis, mefitis "noxious vapor, a pestilential exhalation, especially from the earth" (also personified as a goddess believed to have the power to avert it), an Italic word of uncertain origin. English use of mephitis is attested from 1706.
