'2D-printed' is a compound formed from '2D' (an abbreviation of 'two-dimensional') and 'printed' (the past participle of 'print'). '2D' comes from 'two-dimensional' (two + dimensional), while 'print' comes ultimately from older words meaning 'to press' used for making images or text by pressing ink onto a surface.

'2D' is a modern abbreviation of 'two-dimensional' (adopted in technical and everyday use in the 20th century). 'Print' entered English via Middle English 'printen' (from Old French forms related to pressing) and developed into the modern verb 'print' and past participle 'printed'. The compound '2D-printed' is a recent technical formation using the numeric abbreviation plus the existing past participle.

Originally, words related to 'print' referred to pressing or stamping; over time the meaning narrowed to producing images or text by ink or other deposition methods. In modern usage, 'printed' also extends to newer technologies (including 2D and contrasts with '3D-printed').