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PRINTING TERMS (A-M)
PRINTING TERMS (N-Z) | COLOR GLOSSARY
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A
AA: Author's alterations; changes or corrections made by the customer after type has been set, altering the original copy.
Absorption: In paper, the property that causes it to take up liquids or vapors in contact with it. In optics, the partial suppression of light through a transparent or translucent material.
Accordion Fold: Two or more parallel folds that open like an accordion.
Acetate: Thin, flexible sheet of transparent plastic used to make overlays.
Acid-Free Paper: Paper having no residual acid-producing chemicals, and a pH of 7 or slightly above 7.
Additive Primaries: In color reproduction, red, green, and blue. When lights of these colors are added together, they produce the sensation of white light.
Against the Grain: At right angles to the grain direction of paper.
Airbrush: A small pressure gun, shaped like a pencil, that sprays watercolor pigment by means of compressed air. Used to create original illustrations and to correct and obtain tone or graduated tone effects. In platemaking, used with an abrasive-like pumice to remove spots or other unwanted areas.
Alkaline-Sized Paper: Paper internally sized with a synthetic sizing material and containing a mildly alkaline filler. The pH of alkaline-sized paper is above 7.5.
Alteration: Change in copy or specifications made after production has begun.
Amberlith: Trade name for orange masking material manufactured by Ulano.
Antique Finish: A term describing the surface, usually on book and cover papers, that has a natural rough finish.
Aperture: In photography, lens opening or lens stop expressed as an F/stop number such as F/22.
Artboard: Alternate term for Mechanical.
Artwork: Original images, including type, illustrations and photos.
Ascender: That part of a lower case letter which rises above the main body, as in the letters b, h, and d.
ASCII: Acronym for American Standard Code for Information Interchange, a standard code used to help interface digital equipment.
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B
Backbone: The back of a bound book connecting the two covers; also called the Spine.
Backing Up: Printing on the second side of a printed sheet.
Back Lining: A paper or fabric adhering to the backbone in a hardcover book.
Bad Break: In composition, starting a page or ending a paragraph with a "widow" or hyphenated word.
Banding: Method of packaging printed pieces using paper, rubber, or fiberglass bands.
Base Line: Imaginary horizontal base on which all characters in a line of type align.
Base Negative: Negative made from copy pasted to mounting board, or base art, not overlays.
Basic Size: The one standard size of each grade of paper used to calculate basis weight.
Basis Weight: Weight in pounds of a ream of paper cut to the basic size for its grade.
Bind: To fasten sheets or signatures with glue, wire, thread, or other means.
Binder's Board: Very stiff paper board used to make covers of case bound books.
Bindery: Print shop department or separate business that does trimming, folding, binding, and other finishing tasks.
Black-and-White: Originals or reproductions in single color, as distinguished from multicolor.
Black Printer: In color reproduction, the black plate, made to increase contrast of neutral tones and detail.
Blanket Cylinder: Cylinder of a press on which the blanket is mounted.
Blanket: Thick rubber sheet that transfers ink from plate to paper on an offset press.
Bleed: Printed image that extends beyond the trim edge of a sheet or page.
Blind Emboss: Impression of an uninked image on the back of a sheet, producing a raised image on the front of the sheet.
Blowup: To enlarge photographically.
Blueline: Prepress, photographic proof where all colors show as blue image on white paper.
Board: Alternate term for Mechanical.
Body: The viscosity, or consistency of printing ink (e.g., an ink with too much body is stiff).
Body Copy: The main part or text of a printed piece, as distinguished from the heading.
Body Type: Typestyle used for the main part or text of a printed piece, as distinguished from the heading.
Bold-Face Type: Type that is heavier than the text weight type of a particular typeface.
Bond Paper: A grade of writing or printing paper in which strength, durability, and permanence are essential requirements; used for letterheads, business forms, etc.
Book Paper: A general term for coated and uncoated papers. The basic size is 25" x 38".
Bookbinder: Alternate term for Trade Bindery.
Brightness: In photography, light reflected by the copy. In paper, the reflectance or brilliance of the paper.
Bristol: Type of board paper used for postcards, business cards, and other heavy-use products.
Broadside: Any large advertising circular.
Brochure: A pamphlet bound or folded in booklet form.
Broken Carton: Less than one full carton of paper.
Broken Image: An incomplete image on a plate.
Broker: Agent who supplies printing from many printing companies.
Bronzing: Printing with a sizing ink, then applying bronze powder to the wet ink to produce a metallic luster.
Bulk: The degree of thickness of paper. In book printing, the number of pages per inch for a given basis weight.
Bulk Pack: To pack printed pieces in boxes without prior wrapping in bundles.
Bullet: Bold dot used for emphasis.
Bump Exposure: An exposure in halftone photography, especially with contact screens, in which the screen is removed for a short time. It increases highlight contrast and drops out the dots in the whites.
Burn: A term used for exposure in platemaking.
Burnish: To smooth and seal by rubbing elements adhered to a mechanical.
Butt: To join without overlapping.
Butt Fit: Ink colors overlapped only a hairline so they appear perfectly butted.
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C
C Print: Color photographic print made from a negative on C Print paper.
CAD/CAM: Computer Assisted Design/Computer Assisted Makeup or Manufacturing.
Calender: To make paper smooth and glossy by passing it between rollers during manufacturing.
Caliper: Thickness of paper usually expressed in thousandths of an inch.
Camera Direct Plate: An offset printing plate produced directly from original copy without a negative.
Camera-Ready Copy: Mechanicals, photographs, and art fully prepared to be photographed for platemaking.
Cap Height: Height of the capital letters of a typeface.
Caps and Small Caps: Two sizes of capital letters made in one size of type, the small caps being the same height as the "x" height of the lower case letters.
Caption: Identifying or descriptive text accompanying a photograph or other visual element.
Case Bind: To bind by gluing signatures to a case made of binder's board covered with fabric, plastic, or leather, yielding hardcover books.
Cast Coated: Coated paper with a high gloss enamel finish.
Catching Up: A term which indicates that the non-image areas of a press plate are starting to take ink or scum.
Center Marks: Lines on a mechanical, negative, plate, or press sheet indicating the center.
Centered: Type with the middle of each line at the midline of the column.
Chalking: In printing, a term which refers to improper drying of ink. Pigment dusts off because the vehicle has been absorbed too rapidly into the paper.
Character: Any letter, numeral, symbol, or punctuation mark making up a type font.
Character Count: Number of characters in a pica, inch, line, column, or page. It is different for each typeface and size and varies when type is extended or condensed.
Chemical Pulp/Fibers: Wood pulp/fibers obtained by digestion and bleaching of wood chips to remove lignin and other organic materials surrounding cellulose fibers and to isolate them for papermaking.
Chipboard: Inexpensive, single-ply cardboard, usually brown or gray.
Chrome: Alternate term for Transparency.
Circular Screen: A circular-shaped halftone screen that enables the camera operator to obtain proper screen angles for color halftones by rotating the screen.
Cleat Bind: Alternate term for Side Stitch.
Clip Art: Retail, non-copyrighted black and white art, printed on white paper for artists' use when preparing mechanicals.
Coarse Screen: Screen with ruling of fewer than 133 lines per inch.
Coated Paper: Paper with a surface coating that produces a smooth finish to improve ink holdout. Surfaces vary from matte to glossy.
Coating: In platemaking, the light-sensitive polymer or mixture applied to a metal plate. In printing, an emulsion, varnish or lacquer applied over a printed surface to give it added protection.
Cold Color: A color which is on the bluish side.
Cold Type: Alternate term for Strike-On or Phototype.
Collate: To assemble sheets into proper sequence. In binding, the gathering of sheets or signatures.
Color Bar: Strip of colors printed near the edge of a press sheet to help evaluate ink density and registration.
Color Break: In multicolor printing, the point or line at which one ink color stops and another begins.
Color Build: The overprinting of colors or screened colors to produce a different color.
Color Correct: To improve or enhance color rendition on separation negatives.
Color Filter: A sheet of dyed glass, gelatin, or plastic used in photography to absorb certain colors and permit better rendition of others. The filters used for color separation are: red, green, blue.
Color Key: 3M trade name for overlay color proof.
Color Matching System: System of numbered ink swatches that facilitates communication about color.
Color Process: Alternate term for 4-Color or full color.
Color Separation: Set of four halftone negatives for making plates for 4-color process printing.
Comb Bind: To bind by inserting teeth of a flexible plastic comb through holes in a stack of paper.
Compose: To set type.
Composite Negative: Negative made by combining two or more pieces of film.
Composite Proof: Proof of color separations in position with graphics and type.
Comprehensive Dummy: Complete simulation of a printed piece. Sometimes referred to as a "comp."
Condensed Type: Characters that are narrow in proportion to their height, thus seeming tall and tightly spaced.
Contact Print: Photographic print made by exposing a negative in direct, uniform contact with paper.
Contact Screen: A photographically-made halftone screen on film having dot structure of graded density, used in vacuum contact with the photographic film to produce halftones.
Contaminants: Materials in waste paper that interfere with fiber recovery and recycling, such as non-water-soluble adhesives, plastic film or foam, rubber, metal, glass, asphalt, carbon paper, laser printed stock, laminated materials and wet strength papers.
Continuous-Tone Copy: Photographs and illustrations having a range of shades.
Contrast: Range of gradations in tones between lightest white and darkest black in continuous-tone copy or the abrupt change between light and dark in line copy.
Converter: Business that combines printed sheets with other materials to make boxes, displays, envelopes, etc.
Copy: For an editor or typesetter, all written material. For a graphic designer or printer, everything that will be printed, including art, photographs, and graphics, as well as words.
Copyboard: Part of a camera that holds copy in position to be photographed.
Copyfit: To use character counts and editing to plan so that type fits space allotted by the layout.
Copyfitting: The calculation of how much space a given amount of copy will take up in a given size and typeface. Also the adjusting of the type size to make it fit in a given amount of space.
Copyright: Ownership of creative work by the writer, photographer, or artist who made it.
Corner Marks: Lines on a mechanical, negative, plate, or press sheet showing the corners of a page or finished piece.
Corrugated: Characteristic of board for boxes made by sandwiching fluted kraft paper between sheets of paper or cardboard.
Cotton Content Paper: Paper made from cotton fibers in addition to wood pulp.
Cover Stock: Grade of paper made for covers and postcards.
Crash Printing: Letterpress printing on carbon or carbonless forms so image prints simultaneously on all sheets in the set.
Creep: Phenomenon of middle pages of a folded signature extending slightly beyond outside pages.
Cromalin: DuPont trade name for integral color proof.
Crop: To eliminate portions of an illustration or photograph so the remainder is clearer, more interesting, or better suited to the layout.
Crop Marks: Lines near the margins of artwork or photos indicating where to cut, perforate, or fold.
Cross Direction: The direction across the grain of paper.
Crossover: Image that continues from one page of a publication across the gutter to the opposite page.
Cut Stock: Paper distributor term for paper 11" x 17" or smaller.
Cutscore: In die-cutting, a sharp-edged knife cut, usually several thousandths of an inch lower than the cutting rules in a die, made to cut part way into the paper or board for folding purposes.
CWT: Paper distributor abbreviation for 100 pounds.
Cyan: One of the four process colors; also known as process blue.
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D
Dampener Fountain: Alternative term for Water Fountain on a press.
Dampeners: In lithography, cloth-covered parchment paper or rubber (bare back) rollers that distribute the dampening solution to the press plate or ink roller.
Dampening System: The mechanism on a press for transferring dampening solution to the plate during
printing.
Dandy Roll: A wire cylinder on papermaking machines that makes wove or laid effects on the texture, as well as the watermark itself. Used in the manufacture of better grades of business and book papers.
Data Conversion: To change digital information from its original code so that it can be recorded by an electronic memory using a different code.
Deboss: To press an image into paper so it lies below the surface.
Deckle Edge: Feathered edge on specially-made sheets of text and cover paper.
Deinking: The process of separating fibers from printed recovered paper by the action of heat, chemicals, and mechanical treatments. These agents detach ink from paper, followed by removal of ink, coatings, fillers, unwanted materials and contaminants.
Densitometer: Instrument used to measure light reflecting from or transmitted through copy.
Density: The degree of darkness of light absorption or opacity of photographic or printed images.
Density Range: Expression of contrast between darkest and lightest areas of copy.
Descender: Portion of a lower case letter falling below its base line as in the letters g, p, and y.
Developer: In photography, the chemical agent and process used to render photographic images visible after exposure to light. In lithographic platemaking, the material used to remove the unexposed coating.
Diazo: A non silver coating for photographic contact printing. In offset platemaking it is a coating used on wipe-on and presensitized plates.
Die: Sharp metal rule used for die cutting or block of metal used for embossing or foil stamping.
Die-Cutting: Cutting shapes in paper using metal rules mounted on a letterpress.
Die-Stamping: An intaglio process for the production of letterheads, cards, etc., printing from lettering or other designs engraved into copper or steel.
Digital Type: Type whose font characters are stored in a typesetter's computer as digital information.
Dingbat: Symbol used for emphasis or decoration.
Direct Mail: Mail designed to motivate readers to respond directly to senders with a purchase, donation, or other action.
Display Type: Type used to attract attention. Display type is usually set larger than the text and is used for headings, titles or signage.
Dodge: To block light from selected areas while making a photographic print.
Dot Etching: Chemical or photographic method of reducing halftone dots in negatives to increase or reduce the amount of color to be printed.
Dot Gain or Dot Spread: Phenomenon of dots printing larger on paper than they are on negatives or plates.
Dot Loss: Disappearance of a dot from the plate.
Double Burn: To expose a plate or proof to two negatives to create a composite image.
Draw Down: Sample of specified ink and paper, used to evaluate color.
Drier: In inkmaking, any substance added to hasten drying.
Drill: To bore holes in paper so sheets fit over posts of loose-leaf binders.
Dropout Halftone: Halftone in which the highlight areas contain no dots.
Dry Gum Paper: Label paper with glue on one side that can be activated by water.
Dull Finish: Paper finish that is matte; not shiny.
Dull Ink or Varnish: Alternate term for Matte Ink or Varnish.
Dummy: A preliminary layout showing the positions of illustrations and text as they are to appear in the final reproduction. Also a set of blank pages made up in advance to show the size, shape, form, and general style of a printed piece.
Duotone: A one color photograph reproduced from two halftone negatives and usually printed in two ink colors.
Duplex Paper: Paper with a different color or finish on each side.
Duplicator: Small offset press using paper 12" x 18" or smaller (not to be confused with spirit duplicator).
Dylux: DuPont trade name for photographic paper used to make blueline proofs.
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E
Electronic Page Assembly: Computerized assembly and manipulation of type, graphics, and other visual elements.
Electronic Retouching: Using a computer and appropriate software to enhance or correct a scanned photograph.
Elliptical Dot: In halftone photography, elongated dots which give improved gradation of tones particularly in middle tones and vignettes-also called chain dots.
Em Space: A space whose width equals the point size of the type being set.
Emboss: To press an image in relief to achieve a raised surface.
En: One-half the width of an em.
Enamel Paper: Alternate term for Coated Paper with high gloss finish.
End Sheets: Sheets on the inside covers of a case bound book.
Engraver: Person who makes a plate for engraving.
Engraving: Method of printing using a plate, also called a die, with an image carved into it.
Estimate: Price that states what a job will probably cost based on initial specifications from the customer.
Etch: Using chemicals to produce an image on a plate by chemical or electrolytic action.
Exposure Time: Time required for light to record an image while striking light-sensitive emulsion.
Extended/Expanded Type: Characters wide in proportion to their height, thus seeming fat and loosely-spaced.
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F
"F" Stops: In photography, fixed stops for setting lens apertures.
Facsimile Transmission (Fax): Process of scanning graphic images to convert them into electric signals which are transmitted to produce a recorded likeness of the original via phone lines.
Fake Duotone: Halftone in one ink color printed over screen tint or solid of a second ink color.
Fast Film: Film that requires relatively little light to record an image.
Felt Side: The smoother side of the paper for printing. The top side of the sheet in paper manufacturing.
Filling In/Up: In letterpress or offset-lithography, a condition in which ink fills the area between the halftone dots or plugs up (fills in) the type.
Film Laminate: Thin sheet of plastic adhered to printed paper for protection.
Filter: Colored glass or gelatin used to reduce or eliminate specific colors from light before it strikes film or paper.
Final Count: Number of printed pieces delivered and charged for.
Fine Screen: Screen with ruling of more than 150 lines per inch.
Finish Size: Size of printed product after production is complete.
Finish: Surface characteristic of paper.
Finishing: Inclusive term sometimes used for all bindery operations.
Fixer: Chemical that prevents deterioration of images on photosensitive paper.
Flash Exposure: In halftone photography, the supplementary exposure given to strengthen the dots in the shadow areas of negatives.
Flat: In photography, characteristic of an image that lacks contrast. In printing, an assembly of negatives taped to masking material and ready for platemaking.
Flexography: Method of printing on a web press using rubber plates with raised images.
Flood: To cover a sheet with ink or varnish.
Flop: To reproduce a photograph or illustration so that its image faces opposite from the original.
Flow: The ability of an ink to spread over the surface of the rollers of a press.
Flush Cover: Cover that is trimmed to the same size as inside pages, as with paperback books.
Flush Left or Right: Type aligning vertically along the left or right side of the column.
FOB: Abbreviation for free on board, as it applies to delivery.
Foil Emboss: To foil stamp and emboss an image.
Foil Stamping: Method of printing on a letterpress using thin metallic or pigmented film and die.
Folio: Page number. Low folio is the left hand page, high folio is the right.
Font: Complete assortment of upper and lower case characters of one typeface.
Form: One side of a press sheet.
Format: Size, shape, and overall style of a layout or printed piece.
Formula Pricing: Printing prices based on standard papers, formats, ink colors, and quantities.
Fountain: Reservoir for ink, varnish or water on a press.
4-Color Process: Technique of printing that uses the four "process" colors of ink to simulate color photographs or illustrations.
Free Sheet: Paper made from cooked wood fibers mixed with chemicals and washed free of impurities.
French Fold: Two folds at right angles to each other.
Fully Saturated: Photographic term for rich color.
Fuzz: Fibers projecting from the surface of a sheet of paper.
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G
Galley: Typeset copy before being made into pages.
Galley Proof: A proof of typeset copy before being made into pages.
Gang: To reproduce two or more printed pieces or multiple copies of the same piece simultaneously on one sheet of paper. Also, to halftone or separate more than one image in only one exposure.
Gather: To assemble signatures into the proper sequence for binding.
GBC Binding: General Binding Corporation trade name for plastic comb binding.
Gear Streaks: In printing, parallel streaks appearing across the printed sheet at the same interval as gear teeth on the cylinder.
Ghost Halftone: Halftone that has been screened to produce a very faint image.
Ghosting: Phenomenon of a faint image on a printed sheet where it was not intended to appear.
Gloss: Characteristic of paper, ink, or varnish that appears shiny and reflects relatively large amounts of light.
Glossy: Photographic print made on glossy paper.
Goldenrod Paper: In offset, a specially-coated masking paper of yellow or orange color used by strippers to assemble and position negatives for exposure on plates.
Gothic Type: Type without serifs.
Grain: In paper, the direction in which fibers are aligned. In photography, crystals that make up emulsion on film.
Grain Long or Grain Short: Paper whose fibers parallel the long or short dimension of the sheet.
Graphic Arts: The crafts, industries, and professions related to designing and printing visual communications.
Graphic Designer: Professional who conceives of the design for, plans how to produce, and may coordinate production of a printed piece, or other visual communications medium.
Gravure: Method of printing using etched metal cylinders.
Gray Scale: Strip of standard gray tones, ranging from white to black placed at the side of original copy during photography to measure tonal range and contrast.
Gripper Edge: Edge of a sheet held by the grippers, thus the first edge through a sheetfed press.
Gripper Margin: Unprintable blank edge of paper on which the grippers clasp the sheet, usually 1/2 inch or less wide.
Grippers: Metal fingers which hold paper and carry it through printing impression, to the delivery end of a press.
Groundwood Paper: Newsprint and other inexpensive papers made from pulp created by grinding wood mechanically.
Gusset: Expandable portion of a bag, file folder, or envelope.
Gutter: Inner margins between type and binding. Space between columns of type.
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H
Hairline: Very thin line or gap about the width of a hair: 1/100 inch.
Halation: In photography, a blurred effect, resembling a halo, usually occurring in highlight areas or around bright objects.
Half Web: Web press whose width and cutoff allow printing eight 8-1/2" x 11" pages on one press sheet.
Halftone: A photograph of continuous-tones through a screen to convert the image into dots. The result may be either positive or negative and on film or paper.
Hard Copy: The output of a computer or printer. Also, the material sent to a typesetter in typed form, for conversion into typeset material.
Head Margin: The white space above first line on the page.
Heat-Set Ink: Special inks for high speed printing which set rapidly when heated and quickly chilled.
Heat-Set Web: Web press equipped with oven to make ink dry faster, thus able to print on coated paper.
Hickey: Spot or imperfection in printing, most visible in areas of heavy ink coverage.
High Contrast: Few or no tonal gradations between dark and light areas.
High-Bulk Paper: Paper made relatively thick in proportion to its basis weight.
High Grade Deinking: Printed and colored waste from industrial sources, plus suitable office waste that has been separated after collection by a waste paper processing facility.
Highlights: The lightest areas in a photograph or halftone.
Holding Fee: Charge made to clients who keep photographs longer than agreed to.
Holdout: Alternate term for Ink Holdout.
Hot Type: Type made from metal.
House Sheet: General-use paper ordered in large quantities and kept in stock by a printer.
Hue: The main attribute of a color which distinguishes it from other colors.
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I
Image Area: Portion of paper on which ink appears.
Image Assembly: Alternate term for Stripping.
Imposition: Arrangement of pages on mechanicals or flats so they will appear in proper sequence after press sheets are folded and bound.
Impression: In printing, one pressing of paper against type, plate, blanket, or die to transfer an image.
Impression Cylinder: Cylinder on a press that presses paper against the blanket (offset) or plate (gravure).
Imprint: To print additional copy on a previously printed sheet.
Index Paper: Light weight board paper for writing and easy erasure.
Indicia: Postal permit information printed on objects to be mailed and accepted by USPS in lieu of stamps.
Industrial Waste Paper: Waste paper created as a by-product of industry such as scrap, trimmings and cuttings from printing and converting plants.
Ink Fountain: Reservoir on a printing press that holds ink.
(Ink) Holdout: A property of coated paper with low ink absorption which allows ink to set on the surface with high gloss. Papers with too much holdout cause problems with set-off.
Ink Jet: Method of printing by spraying droplets of ink through computer-controlled nozzles.
Inkometer: An instrument for measuring the tack of printing inks.
Insert: A printed piece prepared for insertion into a publication or another printed piece.
Integral Proof: Color proof of separation negatives exposed in register on one piece of proofing paper.
Interface: To link two or more electronic devices so they can communicate or function as one unit.
Internegative: Negative made from a transparency for the purpose of making photographic prints.
ISBN: International Standard Book Number assigned by the book's publisher using a system administered by the R. R. Bowker Company in New York City.
ISSN: International Standard Serial Number assigned by the Library of Congress in Washington, DC, to magazines, newsletters, and other serials requesting it.
Italics: Characters that slant to the right.
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J
Job Ticket/Job Jacket: Alternate term for Work Order.
Jog: To straighten or align sheets of paper in a stack.
Justified Type: Flush margins both left and right.
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K
Kerning: The use of negative letterspace between certain characters that makes them appear better fitted together.
Key: To code separate pieces of copy to a layout or mechanical using a system of numbers or letters.
Keyboard: Part of the terminal device similar in appearance to a typewriter, where characters are typed to enter data into a computer or typesetter.
Keyline: Inked lines on artwork that serve as guidelines.
Kiss Die Cut: To die cut, but not all the way through the paper.
Kiss Impression: A very light printing impression, just enough to produce an image on the paper.
Knock Out: Alternate term for Mask Out.
Knockout Film: Alternate term for Masking Material such as Rubylith.
Kraft Paper: Strong paper, usually brown, most commonly used as wrapping paper and in the production of bags.
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L
Lacquer: A clear coating, usually glossy, applied to a printed sheet for protection or appearance.
Laid Finish: Grid of parallel lines on paper simulating surface of handmade paper.
Laminate: A plastic film bonded by heat and pressure for protection and appearance.
Large-Format Camera: Camera that makes negatives 4" x 5" or larger.
Laser Platemaking: The use of lasers for scanning pasteups and/or exposing plates.
Laser: The acronym for Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation. The laser is an intense light beam with very narrow band width that can produce images by electronic impulses. It makes possible imaging by remote control from computers or facsimile transmission.
Laser Printing: Method of photocopying using a laser beam to charge the drum.
Layout: Sketch or drawing of a design for a proposed printed piece showing position, size, and color of copy.
Leader: Line or row of dots guiding the eye across a page to a specific point.
Leading: Amount of space between baselines of type, expressed in points.
Leading Edge: Edge of a sheet of paper that enters the press first, also known as the Gripper Edge.
Ledger Paper: Strong, smooth bond paper used for keeping business records.
Legible: Characteristics of copy which make it easily readable, including typeface, size, leading, quality of printing, and sufficient contrast with the paper on which it appears.
Letter Spacing: Amount of space between letters, usually adjustable.
Letterpress: A press that prints from cast metal type or plates that on which the image or printing areas are raised above the non-printing areas.
Ligature: Two letters that, because of their design, may be typeset as one character. The letters "fi" and "fl" form ligatures in many typefaces.
Light Table: A table with a translucent glass surface lit from below, used by production artists and strippers.
Light Weight Paper: Book grade paper of basis weight 40# or less with high opacity for its weight.
Line Conversion Screen: Piece of film containing line patterns that break copy into patterns as light passes through.
Line Copy: Any copy suitable for reproduction without using a halftone screen.
Line Measure: The width of a line of type.
Line Negative: High contrast negative usually made from line copy.
Lines Per Inch: The number of lines or rows of dots there are per inch in a screen and therefore in a screen tint, halftone, or separation.
Liquid Laminate: Plastic applied to paper as liquid, then bonded and cured into a hard, glossy finish.
Lithography: Method of printing using a chemically-coated plate whose image areas attract ink and whose non-image areas repel ink.
Live Area: Alternate term for Image Area.
Logo: Assembly of type and art into a distinctive symbol unique to an organization, business, or product.
Loupe: Alternate term for Graphic Arts Magnifier.
Lower Case: Letters that are not capitals.
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M
M: Abbreviation for 1,000, as in 1000 sheets of paper. (Roman numeral for 1,000.)
Machine Coated: Paper which is coated one or two sides on a paper machine.
Magenta: One of the four process colors; also known as process red.
Magenta Screen: A dyed contact screen, used for making halftones.
Mailing Service: Business specializing in inserting, labelling, sealing, metering, and mailing large quantities of printed pieces.
Makeready: All activities required to set up a press before production begins. Also refers to paper used in the process.
Makeup: To arrange type and graphics into their proper pattern using layout as a guide.
Manila Paper: Strong, buff-colored paper, most commonly used to make envelopes and file folders.
Margin: Space outside image area, forming border of a page or sheet.
Mark Up: Using standard symbols and proofreaders' marks, to write instructions on copy or proof telling how it should be prepared or corrected.
Mask: In color separation photography, an intermediate photographic negative or positive used in color correction. In offset lithography, opaque material used to protect open or selected areas of a printing plate during exposure.
Mask Out: To cover selected copy or art so it will not appear on a negative or plate.
Masking Material: Opaque material, often film, used in pasteup to outline photographs or in platemaking to withhold light from non-image areas.
Matchprint: 3M trade name for integral color proof.
Matte Finish: Slightly dull finish on coated, lightly-calendered paper.
Mechanical: Camera-ready assembly of type, graphics, and other line copy complete with instructions to the printer.
Mechanical Artist: Alternate term for Production Artist.
Mechanical Pulp/Fibers: Pulp/Fibers obtained by various mechanical means and without removal of lignin and other organic materials associated with cellulose fibers. Included in this pulp category are Groundwood (GW), Thermomechanical Pulp (TMP), and Chemi-Thermomechanical Pulp (CTMP).
Mechanical Separation: Mechanical prepared using a separate overlay for each color to be printed.
Media Conversion: Alternate term for Data Conversion from one digital coding to another.
Medium Format Camera: Camera that makes 2" x 2" negatives.
Medium Screen: Screen with ruling of 133 or 150 lines per inch.
Metallic Ink: Ink containing powdered metal that sparkles in light.
Micrometer: Instrument used to measure thickness of paper.
Middle Tones: Tones in a photograph or illustration about half as dark as its shadow areas and represented by dots between 30% and 70% of full size.
Mill Broke (EPA): Any paper waste generated before completion of the papermaking process. The papermaking process consists of "those manufacturing operations up to and including the cutting and trimming of the paper machine reel into smaller rolls or rough sheets."
Mill Swatch: Paper sample book provided by a mill.
Mimeograph: Method of printing using a plastic stencil mounted on a rotating drum containing ink.
Mimeograph Bond: Highly absorbent paper made for the mimeograph method of printing.
Mockup: Alternate term for Dummy.
Model Release: Contract authorizing commercial use of a photograph that includes image of a recognizable person or private property.
Modem: Short for modulator/demodulator, a device that converts digital signals to analog tones and vice versa so that systems based on electronic memories can interface over telephone lines.
Moire: Undesirable pattern in halftones and screen tints made with improperly aligned screens.
Mottle: Spotty, uneven ink coverage especially noticeable in large solids.
Mounting Board: Any thick, smooth piece of board paper used to paste up copy or mount photographs.
Multicolor Printing: Printing done in more than one ink color.
Mylar: DuPont trade name for polyester film.
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