Ever wonder what all those typesetting and printing terms mean? Here's a listing to answer that question!
Have a term not listed here? Drop us an e-mail and we will respond... and will eventually add your query to this page as well!
Please click on a letter to find the term you're looking for.
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
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ALLEY - Space between images or columns of type on a page, as compared to gutter.
ALTERATION - Changes made by a customer after artwork has been given to a service bureau, pre-press operator or printer. The change could be in copy, specs of a job or both. Also called an author alteration.
ARTWORK - Copy from which negatives or plates are made. Artwork must be in black and white for best reproduction, and may also be color separated.
ASCENDER - The part of a lower case letter that extends beyond its x-height.
BAD BREAK - The incorrect or poorly placed splitting of a word, sentence or paragraph.
BITMAP - In raster graphics, an array of dots that can define either characters or images.
BLUELINE - A proof with a distinctive blue color made from negatives. All colors are burned onto one proof, so that things like copy and photo placement may be checked. Bindery operations like folding and trimming are also verified from a blueline.
BODKIN - A pointed tool used by hot-metal typesetters and printers.
CAMERA-READY ART - Art fully prepared for camera reproduction according to the requirements of the printing process selected. To the layperson, the better the original (artwork) and text look, the better they will reproduce given they are in black or red ink. Red reproduces as black when processing black and white artwork.
CHASE - A rectangular frame used to hold type and graphic elements for letterpress printing.
CHOKE - When an area of a dark color is printed on top of a lighter colored background, a trap is created by enlarging (or choking) the background slightly around the knockout of the top color.
CMYK - Cyan, magenta, yellow and black (K). The four ink colors used in process printing. These colors combine on the page to create a full spectrum of colors.
COLOR KEY - Proofs consisting of one transparent layer for each color. Not as color accurate as a Matchprint™ or Cromalin™, the layers may be separated for individual inspection.
CONDITION - Keeping paper in the pressroom or composition department from a few hours to several days at a time allowing the paper's moisture level and temperature level to equal that of the press room. Also known as curing, maturing or seasoning paper stocks.
CROMALIN™ - A color proof created from four layers of transparent plastic, imprinted with cyan, magenta, yellow and black toner powder. These layers are sandwiched and fused together, creating an accurate representation of final color.
CROP MARKS - Lines near the edges of an image indicate portions to be reproduced.
DECKLED EDGE - Edge of paper left ragged as it comes from the paper-making machine instead of being cleanly cut. Also called a feather edge.
DEFAULT - Action that computer program automatically performs unless instructed otherwise by operator. For example, word processing software defaults to ragged right unless instructed to justify.
DESCENDER - The part of a lower case letter that drops below its x-height.
DISPLAY TYPE - This describes all headline fonts and other large, bold fonts. It is often used to command attention in ads, posters, and other advertising pieces.
DOUBLE SPREAD - A printing image that extends accross and fills two pages of a brochure, book or folder. If located in the center of a book or folder, it is called a center spread.
DROP OUT - Halftone dots or fine lines eliminated from highlights by over-exposure during camera work. The lost copy is said to have dropped out. Drop outs may be done on purpose or accidentally, thus may be enhancements or defects.
DROPPED CAP - Large capital letter that extends down into the first two or more lines. It is used as a design element or a technique making the first letter of an article larger than the remainder of the text. May also be called drop cap.
DROP SHADOW - A special type effect that places a slightly offset shadow behind an image. This creates the illusion that the forward image is popping off the page.
ELEMENTAL CHLORINE FREE (ECF) PAPER - Manufactured and whitened without elemental chlorine. Typically refers to papers bleached with chlorine compound.
EM - A square formed by the value of point size. An em is 10 points wide and 10 points tall when you are using 10-point type.
FLOP - When a photograph is reversed, it is said to be "flopped." Checking for flops is one part of the proofing process.
FONT - A set of characters in the same typeface, size and style. For example, "Times Roman, Bold, Italic, 24 point" would describe a font. The term font is often confused with "typeface" which is the name of the design of the character (i.e. Cooper).
FURNITURE - Blocks of "filler" used during lettertpress lockup to hold things tight and in place.
GRAPHIC ELEMENTS - (referring to logos) graphic elements are the pictures and the text blocks in your logo. In the best logos these are usually combined to express a single idea.
GRIDDING - A design technique in which space is divided into rectangles and elements are confined in those rectangles, thus creating a Mondrian-like geometric design.
GRIPPER EDGE - Edge of the sheet held by the grippers of a sheet fed press. Like small suction cups they grab the papers and send them into the printing press thus preventing artwork or text from entering that area. Some printers need artwork to be designed to allow for this gripper area.
GUTTER - The white space you see between two facing pages.
HALFTONE - A photograph broken into a series of dots.
IMAGESETTER - Printing device that produces high quality resolution on special paper or film. Common resolutions are 1270 or 2540 dpi. Halftones and sreens may be specified from 65 to 150 lpi or better.
INKJET PRINTER - A low-cost printer that sprays liquid ink onto a sheet of paper, usually from 300-600 dpi. Available in black, 3 color or 4 color models.
KNOCKOUT - When one color prints on top of another, the area of the top color is removed from (or knocked out of) the background color.
LASER PRINTER - A desktop printer that deposits tiny particles of toner on a page, much like a photocopier. Resolutions range from 300-1200 dpi or better.
LETTERPRESS - A printing process that utilizes raised text and images. The surface of the type/pictures are inked and then a sheet of paper is pressed against the inked surfaced.
LINE COPY - Any high-contrast image, including type, as compared to continuous-tone copy. Line copy is usually a black image against a white background, but could be created using any color, such as red, that yields high-contrast when photographed using graphic arts film.
LINO - Abbreviation for Linotype, the hot-metal typesetting machine that revolutionized typesetting at the turn of the century.
LOCKUP - Process of putting type and art into a "case" and "locking" it where it belongs.
LOGO - An image used as a company banner or icon. It is most often used in letterheads, advertising and on products to identify the company. Logos can contain text, graphics or both in combination.
MADE FROM 100% RECYCLED FIBERS - Used to identify carton made totally from recycled fibers, containing no virgin fibers.
MADE PRIMARILY FROM RECYCLED FIBERS - Applied to packages made primarily from recycled fibers, but incorporating some small percentage of virgin fibers.
MAKEREADY - All activities required to prepare a press or other machine to function for a specific printing or bindery job, as compared to production run. Press makeready takes the press up to the point of producing a satisfactory press sheet. It includes mounting plates, loading inks, and running preparatory sheets. Bindery makeready includes such activities as loading pockets and adjusting fold bars. Also called setup.
MASK - The material that is used to block certain portions of an image area from light exposure during the creation of the printing plate.
MASTHEAD - Area identifying the title, ownership, management, subscription rates, and other pertinent information of a newspaper or periodical.
MATCHPRINT™ - A color proof created with a layer of film representing each process color. Additional layers for spot colors may also be added. These are fused together tocreate a proof. Spot colors are sometimes not reproduced accurately in a Matchprint.
MECHANICAL - The assembly of all page elements, including texand line art, properly proportioned and positioned, in camera-ready form. Alternative term: Pasteup.
NAMEPLATE - Portion of front page of newsletter that graphically presents its name, subtitle and date line.
NON-CHLORINE BLEACHED PAPER - Composed entirely of wood fiber from recycled paper products and produced without chlorine. Another term for the same product would be secondarily chlorine free.
OVERPRINT - To print one image over a previously printed image, such as printing type over a screen tint.
OUTPUT - The image of your file put on paper or film out of a device such as a printer or imagesetter.
OVERWORK - Additional image area on artwork that extends beyond the trim marks, resulting in a bleed. At least 1/8 inch of overwork is desirable.
PAGE LAYOUT PROGRAM - Application designed for the purpose of producing pages combining text and graphics. PageMaker™ and QuarkXPress™ are two popular page layout programs.
PHOTOCOPY - A process used to make copies of (typically) images on paper. Early photocopiers used a photochemical process to expose a light-sensitive drum and then transfer the image from the drum to paper where the image was developed. Today, photocopiers most commonly use (high-voltage) electrostatic image transfer instead of wet processing.
PHOTOSTAT - A high-resolution photographic image (generally) used to create negatives used to produce plates for printing.
PICA - The basic measurement unit that is used in the graphic arts field. A pica is about 0.166 of an inch, and this makes six picas per inch. Picas are further broken down into points. There are 12 points per pica; 6 picas per inch; and 72 points per inch.
PLATFORM - Originally referring to the hardware (chips, etc.) of a computer system, this term has come to refer to the operating system, the software that allows the computer to run all the programs (applications). DOS, Windows 95, Machintosh System 7.5 and UNIX are examples of different operating systems.
POST-CONSUMER WASTE - Materials which is used by a consumer in one form, then recycled for reuse.
PRE-CONSUMER WASTE - Material which is recycled prior to its use by a consumer.
PROCESSED CHLORINE FREE RECYCLED PAPER - Made without chlorine of any kind (yet including 20% post-consumer waste). Aquarius is the first U.S. paper fitting this description.
PULL QUOTE - Words from an article printed in large type and inserted into the page similarly to an illustration.
QUION - Device to create pressure to press furniture, slugs, etc. in place during the lockup process.
RECYCLED RECYCLABLE - Applied to packages made wholly or primarily from recycled fibers which are readily capable of being recycled again.
REGLET - Flat thin strip used for spacing purposes.
RUNNING HEAD - A headline that is repeated at the top of each page in a publication.
SANS SERIF - A font or typeface in which all the characters lack serifs (the short lines at the tops and bottoms of letters).
SERIFS - The short lines that are added to the tops and bottoms of a typeface.
SLUG - A single line of typesetting set on a hot metal machine.
SMALL CAPS - Upper case letters reduced to the x-height.
SPACEBAND - The variable space between words, having a minimum, ideal, and maximum value.
SPECIFICATIONS - Complete and precise written description of features of a printing job such as type size, leading (space between lines), paper grade, quantity, printing quality and binding method. (This includes binding, folding, padding, gluing or stapling).
SPREAD - When an area of one color is printed on top of a darker colored background, a trap is created by enlarging (or spreading) the top color slightly so that it overprints the edge of the background adjacent to the knockout.
STET - Proofreader mark for 'let it stand' instructing a typesetter to ignore an indicated change and keep the original version.
TOMBSTONE - Avoid these! They occur when two headlines are next to each other, so that, at first glance, they appear to be one headline.
TOTALLY CHLORINE FREE (TCF) PAPER - Manufactured without chlorine or its derivatives. Typically refers to using 100% virgin fibers.
TRADEMARK - A symbol (logo text, name, etc.)used by a company to identify either the company itself or one or more products produced by (or in some cases, just marketed by) the company.Companies often go to great length to develop a good corporate reputation. This reputation is often directly linked to trademarks like BAYER™ aspirin or HARLEY DAVIDSON™ motorcycles. As such, companies go to great lengths to protect trademarks. The most common approach is to register the trademark with the federal government (hence the term "registered trademark").
TRAP - The area which overprints when two colors touch. When creating traps, the lighter color should overprint the darker color.
TRAPPING - A technique in which adjacent colors slightly overprint along common edges in order to minimize the effects of misregistration. When creating traps, the lighter color should overprint the darker color.
UNBLEACHED PAPER - Paper that is either not bleached or paper that is whitened in a non-chlorine process using chemicals such as hydrogen peroxide.
X-HEIGHT - Since the letter "x" is proportional, having no lines above or below it, it is a considered a standard measurement for height.
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(818) 840-8013 • (818) 842-5167 • Fax (818) 840-8014
E-mail: info@burbankprint.com
