The specific heat and Gr€ uneisen parameter for 2D liquid dusty plasmas have been studied using the concepts of cold/thermal pressure and energy. Based on molecular dynamics simulations, the recently obtained expression of the pressure for 2D liquid dusty plasmas is composed of two terms, which just follow the traditional definitions of the cold pressure and thermal pressure, respectively. The obtained energy results from simulations for 2D liquid dusty plasmas are fit to two terms, one is independent of the temperature and the other is dependent on the temperature, so that they agree with the definitions of the cold and thermal energies. The obtained thermal/cold pressure/energy from fitting are self-consistent in the thermodynamics relationship, suggesting that the methodology developed here is reliable. Thus, the specific heat of 2D liquid dusty plasmas can be derived analytically from the thermal energy, and the specific heat results obtained here are well consistent with previous studies using different approaches. The obtained specific heat decays as both the screening parameter and the temperature increase, and the corresponding physics interpretation is presented. Finally, the Gr€ uneisen parameter for 2D liquid dusty plasma is obtained from the obtained expressions of the thermal pressure and energy, and its variation trend has also been discussed. Published by AIP Publishing. [http://dx.