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Because of the size of our glossary, we have broken it out by letter. Please use the letter navigation below to locate the term(s) you are interested in.
Edge of a bound publication opposite the spine. Also called foredge. Also, an abbreviation for typeface referring to a family of a general style.
Halftone in one ink color printed over screen tint of a second ink color. Also called dummy duotone, dougraph, duplex halftone, false duotone, flat tint halftone and halftone with screen.
Inks with colors that retain their density and resist fading as the product is used and washed.
Component of a printing press that moves paper into the register unit.
Soft woven pattern in text paper.
Side of the paper that was not in contact with the Fourdrinier wire during papermaking, as compared to wire side.
Ink color used in addition to the four needed by four-color process.
Thickness of film. The most common gauge for graphic arts film is 0.004 inch (0.1 mm).
Thin sheet of plastic bonded to a printed product for protection or increased gloss.
Papers made specifically for writing or commercial printing, as compared to coarse papers and industrial papers. Also called cultural papers and graphic papers.
Screen with ruling of 150 lines per inch (80 lines per centimeter) or more.
(1) Surface characteristics of paper.
(2) General term for trimming, folding, binding and all other post press operations.
Size of product after production is completed, as compared to flat size. Also called trimmed size.
Refers to ability of film to be registered during stripping and assembly. Good fit means that all images register to other film for the same job.
Costs that remain the same regardless of how many pieces are printed. Copyrighting, photography and design are fixed costs.
(1) Any color created by printing only one ink, as compared to a color created by printing four-color process. Also called block color and spot color.
(2) color that seems weak or lifeless.
Diagram of the flats for a publication showing imposition and indicating colors.
Size of product after printing and trimming, but before folding, as compared to finished size.
Method of printing on a web press using rubber or plastic plates with raised images. Also called aniline printing because flexographic inks originally used aniline dyes. Abbreviated flexo.
To print a sheet completely with an ink or varnish. flooding with ink is also called painting the sheet.
Cover trimmed to the same size as inside pages, as compared to overhang cover. Also called cut flush
Leaf, at the front and back of a casebound book that is the one side of the end paper not glued to the case.
Used in making type more legible by lowering density of an image, while allowing the image to show through.
To foil stamp and emboss an image. Also called heat stamp.
Method of printing that releases foil from its backing when stamped with the heated die. Also called block print, hot foil stamp and stamp.
A bindery machine dedicated to folding printed materials.
With printed matter, markings indicating where a fold is to occur, usually located at the top edges.
Gatefold sheet bound into a publication, often used for a map or chart. Also called gatefold and pullout.
The actual page number in a publication.
Each side of a signature. Also spelled forme.
Size, style, shape, layout or organization of a layout or printed product.
Lightweight bond, easy to perforate, made for business forms. Also called register bond.
Roller(s) that come in contact with the printing plate, bringing it ink or water.
Refers to inexpensive copies of photos or art used on mechanical to indicate placement and scaling, but not intended for reproduction. Abbreviated FPO.
In the case book arena, the binding process which involves folding, rounding, backing, headbanding and reinforcing.
Trough or container, on a printing press, that holds fluids such as ink, varnish or water. Also called duct.
Mixture of water and chemicals that dampens a printing plate to prevent ink from adhering to the nonimage area. Also called dampener solution.
Technique of printing that uses black, magenta, cyan and yellow to simulate full-color images. Also called color process printing, full color printing and process printing.
Paper made from cooked wood fibers mixed with chemicals and washed free of impurities, as compared to groundwood paper. Also called woodfree paper.
A printed sheet, printed one side only, folded with two right angle folds to form a four page uncut section.
Halftone ranging from 0 percent coverage in its highlights to 100 percent coverage in its shadows.
Black separation made to have dots throughout the entire tonal range of the image, as compared to half-scale black and skeleton black. Also called full-range black.
