'plasticiser' originates from English, formed from 'plastic' + the agent-forming suffix '-iser' (ultimately from Greek '-izein' via Latin and French), where 'plastic' meant 'capable of being molded'.

'plasticiser' developed in the late 19th to early 20th century by adding the productive suffix to 'plastic' (from Greek 'plastikos' meaning 'fit for molding', from the verb 'plassein' to mold), eventually yielding the modern English word 'plasticiser'.

Initially, 'plastic' described the property 'capable of being molded'; over time, 'plasticiser' came to specifically mean 'a chemical added to materials to make them more plastic or flexible'.