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Printing and Finishing Glossary
From Jacci Howard Bear, About.com Guide
Get a better understanding of printing processes and finishing techniques with these definitions and lessons. Improve your printing vocabulary. Take a look at the terminology of printing and finishing, especially as it applies to desktop publishing. Get definitions, examples, and tutorials.
All the Glossaries: Full Glossary | Layout & Design | Prepress | Graphics | Software | Type & Fonts | Business | Paper
Get a better understanding of printing processes and finishing techniques with these definitions and lessons. Improve your printing vocabulary. Take a look at the terminology of printing and finishing, especially as it applies to desktop publishing. Get definitions, examples, and tutorials.
All the Glossaries: Full Glossary | Layout & Design | Prepress | Graphics | Software | Type & Fonts | Business | Paper
Accordian Folds
Zig-zag folds with 6 panels and two parallel folds...
Blind Embossing
An embossed image without ink or foil that is the same color as the paper...
Black
Black is an ink and a typeface style...
C Folds
Common tri-fold for brochures...
Camera Ready
prepress term
Case Binding
finishing term
Choke
printing term
CMYK
prepress and printing term
Coil Binding (Spiral Binding)
finishing term
Collation, Collate
Putting your pages in proper order...
Color Key
prepress - proof
Comb Binding
finishing term
Comp, Composite, Comprehensive
prepress term
Contact Proof
prepress - proof
Contract Proof
prepress - printing - proof
Creative Printing
printing term
Creep Allowance
prepress and printing term
Crossfolds
Paper with right angle folds...
Cyan
One of the four colors used in 4-color process printing.
Debossing
Finishing technique like embossing but with depressions...
Desktop Printer
Personal printer...
Diecuts
Cuts and cut-outs after printing...
Digital Proof
prepress - proof
Dot Matrix
desktop printing
Double Gatefold
Three parallel folds and edges that meet in the middle...
Double Parallel Folds
All folds run the same direction...
Dye-Sublimation
desktop printing
Dylux (Blueline)
printing - proof
Edition Binding (Case Binding)
finishing term
Embossing
A three-dimensional design or image on paper... Simulated three-dimensional look done in graphics software...
Engraving
commercial printing process
Finish
A paper surface or an end process to a printing project...
Flaws
Those little blips and smudges that can make a printing job less than perfect...
Flexography
commercial printing process
Flood Coating
Coat the entire page...
Foil Stamping
printing and finishing term
Folio
Folded sheet of paper or a book...
FPO - For Position Only
A placeholder for an image...
French Folds
Paper in this cross-folded pattern has uneven panel sizes...
Gatefolds
Opposite edges folded into the middle...
Gravure
commercial printing process
Imposition Proof
For checking that pages are properly imposed before printing...
Ink Embossing
Embossing a printed image...
Inkjet
desktop printing
Intaglio Printing
commercial printing process
Key Plate
printing term
Keyline
prepress and printing term
Knockout
printing term
Laminate Proof
prepress - proof
Laser
desktop printing
Foil Embossing
Foil applied to embossed images...
Letterpress
commercial printing process
Lithography
commercial printing process
LPI or lines per inch
Halftone resolution...
Magenta
A reddish ink used in four-color process printing...
Make-Ready
Getting the printing press ready for a print job...
Matchprint
prepress - proof
Offset Lithography
commercial printing process
Overlay Proof
prepress - proof
Overprint
Printing layers of ink...
Overprint Varnish
Clear coating...
Paper Proof (Contact Proof)
prepress - proof
Parallel Folds
A common fold for letters, brochures, and more...
Parent Sheet
Paper sizes used by commercial printers...
Perfect Binding
Paperback book binding method...
Photogravure
commercial printing process
Photostat (Stat)
prepress - proof
Planography (Lithography)
commercial printing process
Point
Type and printing measurement...
Poor Man's Engraving (Thermography)
commercial printing process
Position Proof (Contact Proof)
prepress - proof
Press Proof
Final proof that everything will print correctly...
Picking
Little fibers that need picking from paper...
Printing Plate
Surface that holds the image to for printing on the press...
Printing Press
A machine the presses ink on paper for printing...
Progressives (Overlay Proof)
prepress - proof
Proofs
Proof that what you designed is what actually gets printed...
RC Paper
prepress - proof
Relief Printing
commercial printing process
Ring Binding
Binding pages with rings, like in a 3-ring notebook binder...
Rotogravure (Gravure)
commercial printing process
Saddle-Stitched
Folded, nested pages stitched or stapled down the fold...
Sheet-fed Press
Prints on sheets not rolls of paper...
Signature
A section of a book or a part of an ad...
Slug
Extra information about a file...
Soft Proof (Digital Proof)
prepress - proof
Solid Ink
desktop printing
Spiral Binding
finishing term
Spiral Folds
paper and finishing term
Spot Varnish
A clear coating, added after printing, in just a spot or two...
Spread
layout and printing term
Stat
printing - proof
Thermal Autochrome
desktop printing
Thermal Binding
Binding with heat-fused tape or plastic for small books, booklets, notebooks...
Thermal Wax
desktop printing
Thermography
commercial printing process
Trapping
Preventing gaps between touching colors...
Trim Size
Paper size after printing and cutting...
Trim Size
finishing term
VanDyke (Blueline)
prepress - proof
Varnish
finishing term
Velox
prepress - proof
Web Press
commercial printing press
Wire Binding
Not just for spiral notebooks...
Yellow
A sunshine color and an ink used in processing printing...
Zig Zag Folds
paper and finishing term