'archplunderer' originates from a combination of the prefix 'arch-' (from Greek 'arkhos'), where 'arch-' meant 'chief', and the noun 'plunderer' (from Low German 'plundern'), where 'plundern' meant 'to plunder' or 'one who plunders'.

'arch-' entered English usage as a formative prefix via Latin/Old French in compounds (e.g. 'archbishop'), while 'plunderer' derives from Low German 'plundern' → Middle Low German 'plunderen' and was adopted into English as 'plunder'/'plunderer'; the compound 'archplunderer' is a modern English formation combining these elements.

Initially the parts meant 'chief' + 'one who plunders'; combined they literally meant 'chief plunderer' and have since been used both literally and figuratively to mean 'principal plunderer' or 'an entity that strips resources'.