Glossary of Printing Terms

Printing Ideas is committed to providing our customers with high quality printing services. We strive to give each and every customer cost effective, quick turnaround print jobs. Below is a partial list of the top quality printing products and services we provide.
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Alteration:
Change in copy of specifications after production has begun.

Author's Corrections:
Also know as "AC's". Changed and additions in copy after it has been typeset.

Back Up:
Printing the second side of a sheet already printed on one side.

Banding:
A method of packaging printed pieces of paper using rubber, plastic, or paper bands.

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 wire, thread, glue, or by other means.

Bindery:
The finishing department of a print shop or firm specializing in finishing printed products.

Blanket:
The thick rubber mat on a printing press that transfers ink from the plate to paper.

Bleed:
Printing that goes to the edge of the sheet after trimming.

Blind Embossing:
An image pressed into a sheet without ink or foil.

Blueline:
A blue photographic proof used to check position of all image elements.

Board:
Alternate term for mechanical.

Bond Paper:
Strong durable paper grade used for letterheads and business forms.

Break For Color:
Also known as a color break. To separate mechanically or by software the parts to be printed in different colors.

Brightness:
The brilliance or reflectance of paper.

Bulk:
Thickness of paper stock in thousandths of an inch or number of pages per inch.

Bulk Pack:
Boxing printed product without wrapping or banding.

Burn:
Exposing a printing plate to high intensity light or placing an image on a printing plate by light.

Butt:
Joining images without overlapping.

Carbonless:
Pressure sensitive writing paper that does not use carbon.

Caliper:
Paper thickness in thousandths of an inch.

Cast Coated:
Coated paper with a high gloss reflective Finishing.

Coated Paper:
Clay coated printing paper with a smooth finish.

Collate:
A finishing term for gathering paper in a precise order.

Color Bar:
A quality control term regarding the spots of ink color on the tail of a sheet.

Color Correction:
Methods of improving color separations.

Color Key:
Color proofs in layers of acetate.

Color Matching System:
A system of formulated ink colors used for communicating color also know as pantone matching system.

Color Separations:
The process of preparing artwork, photographs, transparencies, or computer generated art for printing by separating into the four primary printing colors.

Continuous-Tone Copy:
Illustrations, photographs or computer files that contain gradient tones from black to white or light to dark.

Contrast:
The tonal change in color from light to dark.

Copy:
All furnished material or disc used in the production of a printed product.

Cover Paper:
A heavy printing paper used to cover books, make presentation folders, etc.

Crash Number:
Numbering paper by pressing an image on the first sheet which is transferred to all parts of the printed set.

Cromalin:
Trade name for DuPont color proofs.

Crop:
To cut off parts of a picture or image.

Crop Marks:
Printed lines showing where to trim a printed sheet.

Cyan:
One of four standard process colors. The blue color.

Densitometer:
A quality control devise to measure the density of printing ink.

Density:
The degree of color or darkness of an image or photograph.

Die:
Metal rule or imaged block used to cut or place an image on paper in the finishing process.

Die Cutting:
Curing images in or out of paper.

Dot:
An element of halftones. Using a loupe you will see that printed pictures are made many dots Dot gain or spread: A term used to explain the difference in size between the dot on film to paper.

Double Burn:
Exposing a plate to multiple images.

Draw Down:
A sample of ink and paper used to evaluate ink colors.

Dummy:
A rough layout of a printed piece showing position and finished size.

Duotone:
A halftone picture made up of two printed colors.

Dylux:
Photographic paper made by DuPont and used for bluelines.

Emboss:
Pressing an image into paper so that it will create a raised relief.

Emulsion:
Light sensitive coating found on printing plates and film.

Facsimile Transmission:
The process of converting graphic images into electronic signals.

Flood:
To cover a printed page with ink, varnish, or plastic coating.

Flop:
The reverse side of an image.

Foil Emboss:
Foil stamping and embossing an image on paper with a die.

Foil Stamping:
Using a die to place a metallic or pigmented image on paper.

Four-Color-Process:
The process of combining the four primary colors to create a printed color picture or colors composed from the basic four colors.

French Fold:
Two folds at right angles to each other.

Gang:
Getting the most out of a printing press by using the maximum sheet size to print multiple images or jobs on the same sheet. A way to save money.

Generation:
Stages of reproduction from original copy. A first generation reproduction yields the best quality.

Ghosting:
A faint printed image that appears on a printed sheet where it was not intended. It is hard to tell when or where ghosting will occur. Sometimes you can see the problem developing immediately after printing the sheet, other times the problem occurs while drying. However the problem occurs it is costly to fix, if it can be fixed. Since it is a function of graphical design, the buyer pays for the increased cost.

Gloss:
A shiny look reflecting light.

Grain:
The direction in which the paper fibers lie.

Grippers:
The metal fingers on a printing press that holds the paper as it passes through the press.

Hairline:
A very thin line or gap about the width of a hair or 1/100-inch.

Halftone:
Converting a continuous tone to dots for printing.

Hard Copy:
The output of a computer printer, or typed text sent for typesetting.

Hickey:
Reoccurring unplanned spots that appear in the printed image from dust, lint, dried ink.

High-Bulk Paper:
A paper made thicker than its standard basis weight.

Highlight:
The lightest areas in a picture or halftone.

Image Area:
Portion of paper on which ink can appear.

Imposition:
Positioning printed pages so they will fold in the proper order.

Impression:
Putting an image on paper.

Imprint:
Adding copy to a previously printed page.

Indicia:
Postal information place on a printed product.

Ink Fountain:
The reservoir on a printing press that holds the ink.

Kiss Die Cut:
To cut the top layer of a pressure sensitive sheet and not the backing.

Knock Out:
To mask out an image.

Laid Finish:
Simulating the surface of handmade paper.

Laminate:
To cover with film, to bond or glue one surface to another.

Line Copy:
High contrast copy not requiring a halftone.

Lines Per Inch:
The number of rows of dots per inch in a halftone.

Loupe:
A magnifying glass used to review a printed image, plate and position film.

Magenta:
Process red, one of the basic colors in process color.

Makeready:
All the activities required to prepare a press for printing.

Mask:
Blocking light from reaching parts of a printing plate.

Matchprint:
Trade name for 3M integral color proof.

Matte Finish:
Dull paper or ink finish.

Mechanical:
Camera ready art all contained on one board.

Mechanical Separation:
Mechanical art overlay for each color to be printed.

Micrometer:
Instrument used to measure the thickness of different papers.

Middle Tones:
The tones in a photograph that are approximately half as dark as the shadow area.

Moiré:
Occurs when screen angles are wrong causing odd patterns in photographs.

Negative:
The image on film that makes the white areas of originals black and black areas white.

Offsetting:
An intermediate surface used to transfer ink. Also, an unpleasant happening when the images of freshly printed sheets transfer images to each other.

Offset Paper:
Term for uncoated book paper.

Ok Sheet:
Final approved color-inking sheet before production begins.

Opacity:
The amount of show-through on a printed sheet. The more opacity or the thicker the paper the less show-through. (The thicker/heavier the paper the higher the cost.)

Outline Halftone:
Removing the background of a picture or silhouetting an image in a picture.

Overlay:
The transparent cover sheet on artwork often used for instructions.

Overrun or Overs:
Copies printed in excess of the specified quantity. (Printing trade terms allow for + - 10 % to represent a completed order.)

Page Count:
Total number of pages in a book including blanks.

Pattern Carbon:
Special carbon paper used in business forms that only transfers in certain areas.

Perfect Bind:
A type of binding that glues the edge of sheets to a cover like a telephone book, Microsoft software manual, or Country Living Magazine.

Perfecting Press:
A sheet fed printing press that prints both sides of a sheet in one pass. Pica: Unit of measure in typesetting. One pica = 1/6 inch.

Picking:
Printers nightmare that occurs as the surface of a sheet lifts off during printing. Generally a paper manufactures quality control problem.

Plate Gap:
Gripper space. The area where the grippers hold the sheet as it passes through the press.

PMS:
The abbreviated name of the Pantone Color Matching System.

Point:
For paper, a unit of thickness equaling 1/1000 inch. For typesetting, a unit of height equaling 1/72 inch.

PostScript:
The computer language most recognized by printing devices.

Pressure-Sensitive Paper:
Paper material with self sticking adhesive covered by a backing sheet.

Process Blue:
The blue or cyan color in process printing.

Process Colors:
Cyan (blue), magenta (process red), yellow (process yellow), and black (process black).

Ragged Left:
Type that is justified to the right margin and the line lengths vary on the left.

Ream:
Five hundred sheets of paper.

Reflective Copy:
Copy that is not transparent.

Register:
To position print in the proper position in relation to the edge of the sheet and to other printing on the same sheet.

Register Marks:
Cross-hair lines or marks on film, plates, and paper that guide strippers, platemakers, pressmen, and bindery personnel in processing a print order from start to finish.

Reverse:
The opposite of what you see. Printing the background of an image. For example; type your name on a piece of paper. The reverse of this would be a black piece of paper with a white name.

Rip Film:
A method of making printing negatives from PostScript files created by desktop publishing.

Saddle Stitch:
Binding a booklet or magazine with staples in the seam where it folds.

Scanner:
Device used to make color separations, halftones, duo tones and tri tones. Also a device used to scan art, pictures or drawings in desktop publishing.

Score:
A crease put on paper to help it fold better.

Screen Angles:
Frequently a desktop publisher's nightmare. The angles at which halftone, duo tones, tri tones, and color separation printing films are placed to make them look right.

Self-Cover:
Using the same paper as the text for the cover.

Shadow:
The darkest areas of a photograph.

Show-Through:
Printing on one side of a sheet that can be seen on the other side of the sheet.

Side Guide:
The mechanical register unit on a printing press that positions a sheet from the side.

Side Stitch:
Binding by stapling along one side of a sheet.

Signature:
A sheet of printed pages which when folded become a part of a book or publication.

Silhouette Halftone:
A term used for an outline halftone.

Skid:
A pallet used for a pile of cut sheets.

Specifications:
A precise description of a print order.

Spine:
The binding edge of a book or publication.

Spoilage:
Planned paper waste for all printing operations.

Spot Varnish:
Varnish used to highlight a specific part of the printed sheet.

Stamping:
Term for foil stamping.

Stock:
The material to be printed.

Stripping:
The positioning of film on a flat prior to platemaking.

Substrate:
Any surface on which printing is done.

Text Paper:
Grades of uncoated paper with textured surfaces.

Tints:
A shade of a single color or combined colors.

Transfer Tape:
A peel and stick tape used in business forms.

Transparency:
A positive photographic slide on film allowing light to pass through.

Transparent Copy:
A film that light must pass through for it to be seen or reproduced.

Transparent Ink:
A printing ink that does not conceal the color under it.

Trapping:
The ability to print one ink over the other.

Trim Marks:
Similar to crop or register marks. These marks show where to trim the printed sheet.

Trim Size:
The final size of one printed image after the last trim is made.

Under-Run:
Production of fewer copies than ordered. See over run.

UV Coating:
Liquid laminate bonded and cured with ultraviolet light. Environmentally friendly.

Varnish:
A clear liquid applied to printed surfaces for looks and protection. (UV coating looks better.)

Vignette Halftone:
A halftone whose background gradually fades to white.

Wash-Up:
Removing printing ink from a press, washing the rollers and blanket. Certain ink colors require multiple wash-ups to avoid ink and chemical contamination.

Waste:
A term for planned spoilage.

Watermark:
A distinctive design created in paper at the time of manufacture that can be easily seen by holding the paper up to a light.

Wire O:
A bindery trade name for mechanical binding using double loops of wire through a hole.

Wire-O Binding:
A method of wire binding books along the binding edge that will allow the book to lay flat using double loops. See Wire O.

With The Grain:
Folding or feeding paper into the press or folder parallel to the grain of the paper.

Work And Tumble:
Printing one side of a sheet and turning it over from the gripper to the tail to print the second side using the same side guide and plate for the second side.

Work and Turn:
Printing one side of a sheet and turning it over from left to right using the same side guides and plate for the second side.

Wove Paper:
A paper having a uniform unlined surface with a smooth finish.

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