'antisoporific' originates from the Greek prefix 'anti-' (meaning 'against') combined with the Latin-derived word 'soporific' (from Latin 'sopor' meaning 'deep sleep' + '-ficus'/'-fic'), where 'anti-' meant 'against' and 'sopor' meant 'deep sleep'.

'soporific' came into English via Latin 'soporificus' (and later Middle French/Medieval Latin forms) and eventually became English 'soporific'; the prefix 'anti-' (from Greek) was later attached in modern English to form 'antisoporific'.

Initially the components literally signified 'against sleep' (i.e., preventing sleep); over time the combined form has retained that sense and is used to describe things that counteract drowsiness.