A List of Helpful Typesetting Terms for Our Clients
NOTE: The following list is not meant to be exhaustive.
The positioning of text within the page margins. Alignment can be flush left, flush right, justified or centred. Flush left and flush right are sometimes referred to as left justified and right justified.
(ragged right) Pertaining to copy which is aligned on the left margin. 2. (quad left) A code which directs preceding copy to be set flush against the left margin.
(ragged left) Pertaining to copy which is aligned on right margin. 2. (quad right) A code which directs preceding copy to be set flush against the right margin.
The main section of a book, brochure, article, or other text material.
The type style used in the main text of a book, article, or other printed piece. Body type comes in sizes of 14-pts and smaller. Also referred to as Body Type.
All of the pages of the book… Front Matter, Chapters, Back Matter. The book block is everything but the cover.
The process of assembling characters, words, lines, and paragraphs, or of formatting typeset text, graphics, or other images into blocks or pages for reproduction by printing.
The process of adjusting the size and spacing of type to make it fit within a defined area of the page.
A single capital letter, larger than the standard text size, set into a block of text, with one or more lines indented to accommodate the capital.
A unit of measurement exactly as wide and as high as the body size of type being set. It is commonly used to measure spaces, indentions, column sizes, and pages, and can be used for copyfitting and costing. A measurement of area, it is often confused with the `Pica’. In 18-pt type the em is 18 points wide and 18 points high; in 12-pt type it is 12 points square.
Also known as Em Rule. A dash centred on the x-height of characters, one em long, used to indicate a pause in the sentence.
A fixed amount of white space exactly one em wide, which will not be `stretched’ for justification purposes as will a space band.
A unit of measurement exactly one-half as wide as the body size of type being set. In 18-pt type the en is 9 points wide and 18 points high; in 12-pt type it is 6 points wide and 12 points high.
Also known as En rule. A dash centred on the x-height of characters, one en long, used to indicate a range of values.
A fixed amount of white space exactly one en wide, which will not be `stretched’ for justification purposes as will a space band.
The white space which is between columns on a page.
A document style in which the first line of a paragraph is aligned with the left margin, and the remaining lines are all indented an equal amount.
The process of subtracting space between two characters so that they appear closer together. This is usually done to improve the aesthetic appearance of most words that are set in all capitals especially in large display and headline text lines. 2.The part of a letter which actually overhangs the body of the letter itself, such as the curl at the top of the lower case f in a serif face.
Pronounced ledding. The distance of the base line of a line of type from the base line of the line below it, measured in points.
The addition of thin spaces between the letters in order to achieve the desired appearance of text, and increase legibility.
The original material from which type will be set. May be handwritten, typewritten or on a floppy disk.
An element of type (such as a word or a line) which leads into a larger block of type, but which has been left by itself at the end of a page or column. For instance, the first line of a paragraph, or a section head. Sometimes erroneously called a widow.
The process of performing page makeup automatically through a computer program according to page parameters designated by the operator or by a database (where multiple pages fit on to one Printing-Press sheet of paper). 2.The numbering of the pages of a book.
Portable Document Format. Developed by Adobe Systems for `paperless publishing’ with Adobe Acrobat software. PDF compresses PostScript type page files for fast display and printing of electronic documents on computer systems running Acrobat software. (Recent innovations allow the accurate output of complex CMYK objects.)
The measurement of type, generally from the top of the highest ascender to the bottom of the lowest descender. Due to variances in type design, the designated point size of a particular font might be somewhat different from the actual measurement
A headline or chapter title or other identifying caption at the top of a page. Generally running heads and feet appear on a series of pages and may include folios.
Describing a type face whose characters do not have serifs.
The tiny strokes at the end of a larger character stroke, used to provide visual balance to the character shape. 2.Describing a type face whose characters have serifs.
The art and practice of arranging type and other elements in pleasing ways by using combinations of fonts and layout, and adjusting the type in such a way as to produce the most aesthetic result.
A method of creating graphics using points and lines, as opposed to bitmapped (raster) images. Synonymous with object-oriented graphics. (Illustrator, Freehand, CorelDraw etc.)
The blank area on a page where text and illustrations are not printed. 2.In bookwork, the gap between the body text and the running head and folio.
A single short line at the top of the page or column which is the end of a sentence or a paragraph. 2.A single word or syllable standing as the last line of a paragraph. Widows of either definition are typographically undesirable.
The space between words, which may be expanded for purposes of justification. 2.To adjust the spaces between words, making them larger than the minimum allowable size.
