'anti-foaming' is formed from the Greek prefix 'anti-' (from Greek 'antí') meaning 'against' combined with the English noun 'foam' (from Old English 'fām'/'fōm') and the present-participial suffix '-ing', overall meaning 'against foaming'.

The element 'anti-' entered English via Latin/Old French from Greek 'antí' meaning 'against'. 'Foam' evolved from Old English (recorded forms like 'fām'/'fome') through Middle English to the modern word 'foam'. The compound adjective 'anti-foaming' arose in modern technical English (19th–20th centuries) to describe substances or properties that prevent foam.

Originally a literal combination meaning 'against foam', it evolved in industrial and chemical contexts to mean 'preventing or reducing foam' and to name specific additives ('antifoams' or 'defoamers').