'block-printed' originates from English, specifically the words 'block' and 'print', where 'block' meant 'a piece of wood or log' and 'print' meant 'to make an impression (by pressing).'

'block' changed from Middle English 'blok' (and Old French 'bloc') meaning 'log' or 'block'; 'print' developed from Middle English 'printen' (from Old French and ultimately from Latin roots meaning 'to press'), and the compound 'block-print' and its past participle 'block-printed' arose to describe prints made by pressing inked carved blocks.

Initially, 'block' referred to a physical piece of wood and 'print' to the action of pressing an impression; over time the compound came to mean specifically 'produced by the block-printing technique' and is used to describe objects (especially textiles and papers) made by that process.