1727, from vituperate + -ive. Related: Vituperatively.
Entries linking to vituperative
vituperate v.
1540s, back-formation from vituperation, or else from Latin vituperatus, past participle of vituperare. "Not in common use until the beginning of the 19th c." [OED]. Related: Vituperated; vituperating.
-ive
word-forming element making adjectives from verbs, meaning "pertaining to, tending to; doing, serving to do," in some cases from Old French -if, but usually directly from Latin adjectival suffix -ivus (source also of Italian and Spanish -ivo). In some words borrowed from French at an early date it has been reduced to -y (as in hasty, tardy).