'cholinesterase-inhibiting' is a modern compound formed from 'cholinesterase' and the present participle 'inhibiting' (from the verb 'inhibit'). 'cholinesterase' itself combines 'choline' + the enzyme-forming element '-esterase' (from 'ester' + the enzyme suffix '-ase'); 'inhibit' ultimately comes from Latin 'inhibēre' meaning 'to hold back'.

'inhibit' comes from Latin 'inhibēre' (to hold back), passing into Medieval/Scientific Latin and then into English; the suffix '-ase' was coined in biochemical nomenclature in the late 19th/early 20th century (from German usage) to name enzymes, producing terms like 'esterase' and, later, 'cholinesterase'. The compound adjective 'cholinesterase-inhibiting' is a modern English formation used in pharmacology and toxicology.

Initially, 'inhibit' meant 'to hold back or restrain' and '-ase' indicated an enzyme acting on esters; combined in modern scientific English, 'cholinesterase-inhibiting' specifically denotes the property of reducing or blocking cholinesterase enzyme activity.