The printing industry uses terminology that you may not be familiar with. We have indexed a number of the most commonly-used terms. If you have any outstanding questions, please feel free to contact us.
Accordion fold: Bindery term, two or more parallel folds which open like an accordion.
Against the grain: At right angles to direction of paper grain.
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: Method of packaging printed pieces of paper using rubber or paper bands.
Basis weight: Weight in pounds of a ream of paper cut to the basic size for its grade.
Bindery: 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.
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.
Bond & carbon: Business form with paper and carbon paper.
Bond paper: Strong durable paper grade used for letterheads and business forms.
Break for colour: Also known as a colour break. To separate mechanically or by software the parts to be printed in different colours.
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.
Butt fit: Printed colours that overlap one row of dots so they appear to butt.
Carbonless: Pressure sensitive writing paper that does not use carbon.
Caliper: Paper thickness in thousandths of an inch.
Camera-ready copy: Print ready mechanical art.
Case bind: A type of binding used in making hard cover books using glue.
Cast coated: Coated paper with a high gloss reflective finish.
Chrome: A term for a transparency.
Coated paper: A clay-coated printing paper with a smooth finish.
Collate: A finishing term for gathering paper in a precise order.
Colour bar: A quality control term regarding the spots of ink colour on the tail of a sheet.
Colour correction: Methods of improving colour separations.
Colour filter: Filters uses in making colour separations, red, blue, green.
Colour key: Colour proofs in layers of acetate:
Colour matching system: A system of formulated ink colours used for communicating colour.
Colour separations: The process of preparing artwork, photographs, transparencies, or computer generated art for printing by separating into the four primary printing colours.
Comb bind: To plastic comb bind by inserting the comb into punched holes.
Composite film: Combining two or more images on one or more pieces of film.
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 colour 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.
Crimping: Puncture marks holding business forms together.
Crop: To cut off parts of a picture or image.
Crop marks: Printed lines showing where to trim a printed sheet.
Crossover: Printing across the gutter or from one page to the facing page of a publication.
Cyan: One of four standard process colours. The blue colour.
Density: The degree of colour 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 v paper.
Draw-down: A sample of ink and paper used to evaluate ink colours.
Drop-out: Portions of artwork that do not print.
Dummy: A rough layout of a printed piece showing position and finished size.
Duotone: A halftone picture made up of two printed colours.
Emboss: Pressing an image into paper so that it will create a raised relief.
Emulsion: Light-sensitive coating found on printing plates and film.
Eurobind: A patented method of binding perfect bound books so they will open and lay flatter.
Flat: An assembly of negatives taped to masking materials for platemaking.
Flood: To cover a printed page with ink, varnish, or plastic coating.
Flop: The reverse side of an image.
Foil: A metallic or pigmented coating on plastic sheets or rolls used in foil stamping and foil embossing.
Foil emboss: Foil stamping and embossing a image on paper with a die.
Foil stamping: Using a die to place a metallic or pigmented image on paper.
4-colour-process: The process of combining four basic colours to create a printed colour picture or colours composed from the basic four colours.
French fold: Two folds at right angles to each other.
Galley proof: Text copy before it is put into a mechanical layout or desktop layout.
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.
Ghost bars: A quality control method used to reduce ghosted image created by heat or chemical contamination.
Ghosting: A faint printed image that appears on a printed sheet where it was not intended.
Gloss: A shiny look reflecting light.
Grain: The direction in which the paper fiber lie.
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 placed on a printed product.
Ink fountain: The reservoir on a printing press that hold the ink.
Keylines: Lines on mechanical art that show position of photographs or illustrations.
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.
Magenta: Process red, one of the basic colours in process colour.
Make ready: All the activities required to prepare a press for printing.
Marginal words: Call outs for directions on various parts of a business form.
Mask: Blocking light from reaching parts of a printing plate.
Matte finish: Dull paper or ink finish.
Mechanical: Camera ready art all contained on one board.
Mechanical separation: Mechanical art overlay for each colour to be printed.
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.
Non-reproducing blue: A blue colour the camera cannot see. Used in marking up artwork.
Offsetting: Using an intermediate surface used to transfer ink.
Offset paper: Term for uncoated book paper.
OK sheet: Final approved colour inking sheet before production begins.
Opacity: The amount of show-through on a printed sheet.
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.
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.
Pin register: A standard used to fit film to film and film to plates and plates to press to assure the proper registration of printer colours.
PMS: The abbreviated name of the Pantone Colour Matching System.
PMT: Abbreviated name for photomechanical transfer. Often used to make position prints.
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.
Press number: A method of numbering manufacturing business forms or tickets.
Pressure-sensitive paper: Paper material with self sticking adhesive covered by a backing sheet.
Process blue: The blue or cyan colour in process printing.
Process colours: Cyan (blue), magenta (process red), yellow (process yellow), black (process black). Further abbreviated C-M-Y-K.
Ragged left: Type that is justified to the right margin and the line lengths vary on the left.
Ragged right: Type that is justified to the left margin and the line lengths vary on the right.
Ream: Five hundred sheets of paper.
Recto: Right-hand page of an open book.
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 colour 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 publishers nightmare. The angles at which halftone, duo tones, tri tones, and colour 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 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.
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.
Stat: Term for inexpensive print of line copy or halftone.
Stet: A proof mark meaning let the original copy stand.
Stock: The material to be printed.
Substance weight: A term of basis weight when referring to bond papers.
Text paper: Grades of uncoated paper with textured surfaces.
Tints: A shade of a single colour or combined colours.
Tissue overlay: Usually a thin transparent paper placed over artwork for protection uses for marking colour breaks and other printer instructions.
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 colour 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.
Up: Printing two or three up means printing multiple copies of the same image on the same sheet.
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.)
Verso: The left hand page of an open book.
Vignette halftone: A halftone whose background gradually fades to white.
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.
Web press: The name of a type of presses that print from rolls of paper.
Wire O: A bindery trade name for mechanical binding using double loops of wire through a hole. Allows the book to lay flat using double loops.
With the grain: Folding or feeding paper into the press or folder parallel to the grain of the paper.
Wove paper: A paper having a uniform unlined surface with a smooth finish.
© 2007 Palliser Printing Ltd., Invermere, BC. We print for the Columbia Valley and beyond.
