profiteering

profiteering

A shopkeeper is accused of profiteering by selling essential goods at unfairly high prices.

Definition

Noun: - The act of making excessive or unfair profits, especially by taking advantage of a situation of scarcity, crisis, or monopoly, often through unethical or illegal means.

Usage Examples
  • (Making unfair profits from a crisis.)
  • (Exploiting scarcity for excessive gain.)
  • (Unethical profit-making in a necessary sector.)
Advanced Usage
  • "War profiteering": specifically refers to profiteering during armed conflicts.
    • The company was investigated for war profiteering after selling defective equipment to the military. (Exploiting wartime conditions for profit.)
  • "Corporate profiteering": profiteering by large companies.
    • The scandal exposed a pattern of corporate profiteering in the energy sector. (Unethical profit-making by a corporation.)
Variants and Related Words
  • Profiteer (verb or noun): to engage in profiteering; or a person who does so.
    • He was accused of profiteering from the natural disaster. (Verb: to make unfair profits.)
    • The profiteer was arrested for price gouging. (Noun: a person who engages in profiteering.)
  • Profiteerism (noun): the policy or practice of profiteering.
    • The government condemned profiteerism as a threat to public welfare. (The systematic practice of profiteering.)
Synonyms
  • Price gouging: unfairly raising prices on essential goods during an emergency.
  • Exploitation: taking unfair advantage of a situation for personal gain.
  • Racketeering: engaging in dishonest or illegal business activities for profit.
Related Idioms
  • Make a killing: to make a large amount of money quickly, often unethically.
    • The company made a killing by selling bottled water at inflated prices during the flood. (To profiteer excessively.)
  • Cash in on: to profit from a situation, often opportunistically.
    • Some local businesses tried to cash in on the tourist boom by raising prices. (To profiteer from a trend.)
Phrasal Verbs
  • Profiteer off: to make unfair profits from a specific situation or group.
    • The landlord profiteered off the housing crisis by doubling rents. (Exploited a situation for profit.)