Job:03171 Title:Typography Referenced (Rockport)
Page: 321
320-335 03171.indd 321 9/23/11 2:34 PM
Typography Terminology and Language
Text
Job:03171 Title:Typography Referenced (Rockport)
Page: 321
A
Accent
See Diacritic
Adaptable fractions
Fractions made up of three separate
characters, where the height of the
diagonal equals the height of the
numerals on either side. These are also
known as built fractions. Some fonts
contain adaptable fractions as glyphs, but
these also can be created using a font’s
existing characters.
Alignment
The positioning of text within a text
block, where the type lines up along an
invisible axis, normally horizontal or
vertical. Alignment can be fl ush left (all
lines start at the same left-hand vertical
axis, also referred to as left-justifi ed
or ragged right), fl ush right (all lines end
at the same right-hand vertical axis,
also called right-justifi ed or ragged
left), justifi ed (aligned on left and right
sides of the text block), centered (all lines
have the same central vertical axis no
matter their length) or asymmetrical
(226) (free-form).
Alley
See Column gutter
Alphanumeric
A set of alphabetic characters or a run
of text that consists of or uses numbers
and letters.
Alternate characters
See Expert characters
Ampersand
The glyph representing the word “and,”
derived from the Latin word et.
Analphabetic forms
Characters that are part of an alphabet
but do not appear in the alphabeti-
cal hierarchy, for example accents, the
umlaut, or the asterisk.
Aperture
See Counter
Apex
The upper point at which the stems of a
character meet to form a junction with
an angle of less than ninety degrees,
for example the top-most point of an
uppercase (332) A. Apex points can be
pointed, rounded, fl at, or extended.
Arc
A curved stroke that extends from a
straight stem but does not form a bowl; for
example, the bottom of a lowercase (332) j
or the top of a lowercase f.
Arm
A stroke that extends either horizontally
from a vertical stroke or runs diagonally;
for example, the top or bottom of an
uppercase (332) E or the strokes of an
uppercase X.
Ascender
The part of a lowercase (332) character
that extends above the x-height of the
other lowercase characters in a typeface;
for example, the top of the lowercase k, h,
and d.
Asymmetrical
See Alignment
B
Bad break
An incorrectly hyphenated word, a word
break that does not make sense in terms of
the structure of a sentence, or a line break
that creates a widow or orphan. See also
Widow; Orphan
Ball terminal
A circular termination at the end of an
arm in characters such as lowercase (332)
a, c, and r.
Base align
To align or position type on a common
baseline across columns or pages.
Baseline
The invisible line on which the majority of
characters in a typeface rest. A character’s
descender always dips below the baseline.
Baseline grid
An invisible grid (220) running across
a page or spread based on a common
baseline between separate blocks of text.
Beak
A sharp projection that most often
appears at the end of the arc of a
lowercase (332) f, as well as in the
characters c, j, r, and y.
Bitmap font
A font made up of pixels set at a specifi c
size that cannot be scaled up. Bitmap
fonts work together with outline- or
vector-based fonts, where the bitmap font
produces the on-screen display of the
outline font. Also commonly called
screen fonts.
Blackletter
A typeface style based on early written
forms that features elaborate thick-to-
thin straight strokes and serifs, with
narrow counterspaces and tight leading,
thereby producing a heavy or “black”
color on the page. The Gutenberg Bible,
the fi rst book ever printed with movable
type, was set in a blackletter typeface
to mimic the manuscript writing of the
time. Blackletter, which has experienced
a resurgence as a punk or Goth style of
typeface, is also referred to as Old English.
Body size
The point size of a font. This originated
from the height of the metal block on
which a character sat in the days of hand
composition.
Body text
Also referred to as body copy, body type,
or text type (212), the paragraphs in a
document that make up the bulk of its
content. The body text should be set in
a legible (330) style and size, typically
between 8 and 12 points. All body text in
any single document is commonly set in
the same font and on the same leading.
Boldface
A font that has been drawn with a darker,
thicker stroke such that it will stand out
from the body text on a page. It shares
common design characteristics with its
“root” font but is heavier in appearance.
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