The printing industry has been around for centuries, and even though technology has changed the way in which printed materials are produced, the basic terminology remains largely the same. Here is a list of some of the most common printing terms you’ll encounter.
Alignment — The positioning of one or more objects in relation to opposing edges. In printing, alignment corresponds to how margins of the page adhere to design specifications.
Bleed — An extra portion of ink that lies beyond the edge of the printed material. It allows for a complete coverage of 100% over the printed surface by leaving some parts of images or colors outside the page edge.
CMYK — Acronym for the four ink colors used in most color printing: Cyan (C), Magenta (M), Yellow (Y), and Black (K).
DPI — Acronym for dots per inch. This is the number of ink dots used in a square inch to print a document and is an important factor in determining the quality of the printed material.
Font — A set of characters and symbols, typically used to describe a typeface. Fonts come in different styles, such as serif, sans- serif, italic, and bold.
Gauge — A measure of the weight and thickness of a material or coating. This term is typically used in the paper and film industries.
Halftone — A process used to print grayscale images (pictures with shades of gray) by breaking up the image into tiny dots. The amount of dots determines the shade, with fewer dots producing a lighter shade and more dots producing a darker shade.
Linework — A type of artwork that uses only flat colors, straight lines, and solid shapes to create an image.
Newsprint — A type of lightweight, inexpensive paper typically used for printing newspapers and magazines.
Offset — A printing method in which the printing plate is transferred, or offset, from an intermediary surface (such as a rubber blanket) to the paper.
Pantone — A standardized color matching system used in the printing industry to ensure consistent and accurate color replication.
Register — The accurate positioning of one color plate in relation to another. This ensures that printed colors will not appear blurred or misaligned.
Resolution — A measure of the sharpness and clarity of an image. Resolution is typically specified in DPI (dots per inch).
Scale — The ratio at which an object, such as an image or graphic, is represented on a page.
Substrate — The base material upon which an image, pattern, or substance is printed. This is typically paper but can also include metal, plastic, or fabric.
Trapping — A technique used to control the spread of inks and prevent unsightly gaps between colors.
White — A color-blind term used to describe the absence of all colors.
Zipatone — A type of transparent film that can be used to create more complex, multi-colored patterns (as well as shading and highlights) when used in combination with different inks.
These terms are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the terminology of the printing industry. As with anything else, the more you know, the more comfortable you’ll be when it comes to working with printers and understanding the printing process.
