'anti-profiteering' is formed from the prefix 'anti-' (from Greek via Latin, meaning 'against') combined with 'profiteering' (the gerund of 'profiteer'), where 'profiteer' is built on 'profit' plus the agent suffix '-eer'.

'profiteer' developed from 'profit' + the suffix '-eer' (a formation influenced by French '-ier'/'-eer'); 'profit' itself entered English via Old French 'profit' from Latin roots (e.g. 'proficere'/'profectus'). The compound 'anti-profiteering' is a modern English formation (20th century onward) used especially in regulatory and political contexts.

Originally, 'profit' and related forms primarily meant 'advantage' or 'benefit'; over time 'profiteering' came to mean seeking excessive or unfair financial gain, and 'anti-profiteering' evolved to denote policies or attitudes opposing that practice.