The original intention behind the term ‘applicative’ was the following: With the derived verb, the action designated by the base applies (directly) to some participant that it does not apply to with the base verb. Apply here apparently means something like ‘affect’ and refers to the role of an undergoer.
If one represents the valency change triggered by a derivation in the form of a paradigmatic relation between a base construction and a derived construction, one is prompted to find a place in the former for that participant which has the undergoer role in the latter. Sometimes, the semantic role born by it can be coded in an adjunct, typically headed by an adposition. The paradigmatic relationship of the base construction to the derived construction is then one of promotion to a hierarchically superior syntactic function. Therefore, the applicative is generally defined as a derived construction whose function it is to promote a verbal dependent to a higher function, viz. to direct object function.
There are many derivations of transitivization which allow a verb to take a participant in direct object function which cannot have this function with the base verb. And in many such cases, the participant in question cannot at all be constructed with the base verb in one clause. In such cases, no promotion is to be seen. They are better conceived of as extraversion. This is a derivation which directs the action designated by the base to a participant affected by it. The metaphor makes no assumption as to the whereabouts of this participant prior to the operation.
It is also possible that a transitivization in some cases does promote a participant from a lower to a higher syntactic position and with other verbs introduces a direct object out of the blue. For instance, the German deverbal derivation using the prefix be- creates transitive verb. In the standard example laden - beladen ‘load’, a local dependent is promoted to direct object. In other cases like tasten ‘grope’ - betasten ‘touch, feel’, the new direct object cannot be accomodated with the base. In such cases, the same derivational process has an applicative and an extraversive function.