Showing results for "profiteering"

• present participle of profiteer.

profiteering

American  

[pro-fi-teer-ing] / ˌprɒ fɪˈtɪər ɪŋ /

noun

1. the act or practice of seeking exorbitant profits, especially through the sale of scarce or rationed goods.

   The companies who raised prices before, during, or after the hurricane were charged with profiteering.

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Etymology

Origin of profiteering

First recorded in 1810–15; profit ( def. ) + -eer ( def. ) + -ing ¹ ( def. )

Example Sentences

"It's always somebody else's fault: it's either the local authorities' fault or the scandalous profiteering residential sector; nobody will seem to accept responsibility", he says.

From BBC • May 20, 2026

This is not the first time that Gilead has been accused of profiteering.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 9, 2026

The government has said it is primed to step in if there are signs petrol sellers are profiteering from the crisis - something the Petrol Retailers Association has denied is the case.

From BBC • Mar. 30, 2026

People appear to have been profiteering on the prediction-market website Polymarket as well, beginning with Trump’s military operation in Venezuela.

From Salon • Mar. 26, 2026

“Are you silently condemning me for profiteering from the war? Somebody had to import the stockfish, you know.”

From "Half of a Yellow Sun" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Related Words

• crooked
• fraudulent
• nefarious
• rotten
• shady
• unethical
• unscrupulous
• untrustworthy
• venal