'2-propyl' originates from 'propane', specifically the word 'propyl', where 'prop-' meant 'three' and '-yl' is a suffix used in organic chemistry to denote a radical derived from a specified compound.

'Propyl' changed from the Latin word 'pro-' meaning 'forward' and 'pyl' from 'pylos' meaning 'gate', eventually becoming the modern English term 'propyl'.

Initially, it meant 'a group derived from propane', and this meaning has largely remained the same in modern usage.