Alteration
Any change made by the customer after copy or artwork has been given to the service bureau,
separator or printer. The change could be in copy, specifications or both. Also called AA, author
alteration and customer alteration.

Anodized Plate
An offset printing plate having a treated surface in order to reduce wear for extended use.

Anti-offset Powder
Fine powder lightly sprayed over the printed surface of coated paper as sheets leave a press. Also
called dust, offset powder, powder and spray powder.

Aqueous Coating
Coating in a water base and applied like ink by a printing press to protect and enhance the printing
underneath.

Artwork
All original copy, including type, photos and illustrations, intended for printing. Also called art.

Author's Alterations (AA's)
At the proofing stage, changes that the client requests to be made concerning original art provided.
AA's are considered an additional cost to the client usually.
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B

Back Up
(1) To print on the second side of a sheet already printed on one side.
(2) To adjust an image on one side of a sheet so that it aligns back-to-back with an image on the
other side.

Bind
Usually in the book arena, but not exclusively, the joining of leafs or signatures together with either
wire, glue or other means.

Bindery
Usually a department within a printing company responsible for collating, folding and trimming
various printing projects.

Blank
Category of paperboard ranging in thickness from 15 to 48 points.

Blanket
Rubber-coated pad, mounted on a cylinder of an offset press, that receives the inked image from
the plate and transfers it to the surface to be printed.

Bleed
Printing that extends to the edge of a sheet or page after trimming.

Blind Image
Image debossed, embossed or stamped, but not printed with ink or foil.

Blueline
Prepress photographic proof made from stripped negatives where all colors show as blue images on
white paper. Because 'blueline' is a generic term for proofs made from a variety of materials having
identical purposes and similar appearances, it may also be called a blackprint, blue, blueprint,
brownline, brownprint, diazo, dyeline, ozalid, position proof, silverprint, Dylux and VanDyke.
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C

C1S and C2S
Abbreviations for coated one side and coated two sides.

Caliper
(1) Thickness of paper or other substrate expressed in thousandths of an inch (mils or points),
pages per inch (ppi), thousandths of a millimeter (microns) or pages per centimeter (ppc).
(2) Device on a sheetfed press that detects double sheets or on a binding machine that detects
missing signatures or inserts.

Camera-ready Copy
Mechanicals, photographs and art fully prepared for reproduction according to the technical
requirements of the printing process being used. Also called finished art and reproduction copy.

Cast-coated Paper
High gloss, coated paper made by pressing the paper against a polished, hot, metal drum while the
coating is still wet.

Catalog Paper
Coated paper rated #4 or #5 with basis weight from 35# to 50# (50 to 75 gsm) commonly used for
catalogs and magazines.

CMYK
Abbreviation for cyan, magenta, yellow and key (black), the four process colors.

Coated Paper
Paper with a coating of clay and other substances that improves reflectivity and ink holdout. Mills
produce coated paper in the four major categories cast, gloss, dull and matte.

Collate
To organize printed matter in a specific order as requested.

Color Break
In multicolor printing, the point, line or space at which one ink color stops and another begins. Also
called break for color.

Comb Bind
To bind by inserting the teeth of a flexible plastic comb through holes punched along the edge of a
stack of paper. Also called plastic bind and GBC bind (a brand name).

Composite Proof
Proof of color separations in position with graphics and type. Also called final proof, imposition proof
and stripping proof.

Comprehensive Dummy
Simulation of a printed piece complete with type, graphics and colors. Also called color
comprehensive and comp.

Contrast
The degree of tones in an image ranging from highlight to shadow.

Coverage
Extent to which ink covers the surface of a substrate. Ink coverage is usually expressed as light,
medium or heavy.

Crop Marks
Lines near the edges of an image indicating portions to be reproduced. Also called cut marks and tic
marks.

Crossover
Type or art that continues from one page of a book or magazine across the gutter to the opposite
page. Also called bridge, gutter bleed and gutter jump.

Cure
To dry inks, varnishes or other coatings after printing to ensure good adhesion and prevent setoff.

Cyan
One of the four process colors. Also known as process blue.
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D

Deboss
To press an image into paper so it lies below the surface. Also called tool.

Density
(1) Regarding ink, the relative thickness of a layer of printed ink.
(2) Regarding color, the relative ability of a color to absorb light reflected from it or block light
passing through it.
(3) Regarding paper, the relative tightness or looseness of fibers.

Die
Device for cutting, scoring, stamping, embossing and debossing.

Die Cut
To cut irregular shapes in paper or paperboard using a die.

Digital Proofing
Page proofs produced through electronic memory transferred onto paper via laser or ink-jet.

Digital Dot
Dot created by a computer and printed out by a laser printer or imagesetter. Digital dots are uniform
in size, as compared to halftone dots that vary in size.

Direct Digital Color Proof
Color proof made by a laser, ink jet printer or other computer-controlled device without needing to
make separation films first. Abbreviated DDCP.

Dot Gain
Phenomenon of halftone dots printing larger on paper than they are on films or plates, reducing
detail and lowering contrast. Also called dot growth, dot spread and press gain.

Dot Size
Relative size of halftone dots as compared to dots of the screen ruling being used. There is no unit
of measurement to express dot size. Dots are too large, too small or correct only in comparison to
what the viewer finds attractive.

DPI -(Dots-per-inch)
Measure of resolution of input devices such as scanners, display devices such as monitors, and
output devices such as laser printers, imagesetters and monitors. Abbreviated DPI. Also called dot
pitch.

DPI
Considered as "dots per square inch," a measure of output resolution in relationship to printers,
imagesetters and monitors.

Drill
In the printing arena, to drill a whole in a printed matter.

Dry Back
Phenomenon of printed ink colors becoming less dense as the ink dries.

Dull Finish
Flat (not glossy) finish on coated paper; slightly smoother than matte. Also called suede finish,
velour finish and velvet finish.

Dummy
Simulation of the final product. Also called mockup.

Duotone
Black-and-white photograph reproduced using two halftone negatives, each shot to emphasize
different tonal values in the original.
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E

Emboss
To press an image into paper so it lies above the surface. Also called cameo and tool.

Engraving
Printing method using a plate, also called a die, with an image cut into its surface.
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F

Fast Color Inks
Inks with colors that retain their density and resist fading as the product is used and washed.

Fifth Color
Ink color used in addition to the four needed by four-color process.

Finished Size
Size of product after production is completed, as compared to flat size. Also called trimmed size.

Flood
To print a sheet completely with an ink or varnish. Flooding with ink is also called painting the sheet.

Fogging Back
Used in making type more legible by lowering density of an image, while allowing the image to show
through.

Foil Emboss
To foil stamp and emboss an image. Also called heat stamp.

Foil Stamp
Method of printing that releases foil from its backing when stamped with the heated die. Also called
block print, hot foil stamp and stamp.

Fold Marks
With printed matter, markings indicating where a fold is to occur, usually located at the top edges.

Folio (page number)
The actual page number in a publication.

Four-color Process Printing
Technique of printing that uses black, magenta, cyan and yellow to simulate full-color images. Also
called color process printing, full color printing and process printing.
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G

Gang
(1) To halftone or separate more than one image in only one exposure.
(2) To reproduce two or more different printed products simultaneously on one sheet of paper
during one press run. Also called combination run.

Gate Fold
A sheet that folds where both sides fold toward the gutter in overlapping layers.

Ghosting
(1) Phenomenon of a faint image appearing on a printed sheet where it was not intended to appear.
Chemical ghosting refers to the transfer of the faint image from the front of one sheet to the back of
another sheet. Mechanical ghosting refers to the faint image appearing as a repeat of an image on
the same side of the sheet.
(2) Phenomenon of printed image appearing too light because of ink starvation.

Grain Direction
Predominant direction in which fibers in paper become aligned during manufacturing. Also called
machine direction.

Grindoff
Approximately 1/8 inch (3 mm) along the spine that is ground off gathered signatures before
perfect binding.

Gripper Edge
Edge of a sheet held by grippers on a sheetfed press, thus going first through the press. Also called
feeding edge and leading edge.

Gutter
In the book arena, the inside margins toward the back or the binding edges.
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H

Hairline (Rule)
Subjective term referring to very small space, thin line or close register. The meaning depends on
who is using the term and in what circumstances.

Head-to-Tail
Imposition with heads (tops) of pages facing tails (bottoms) of other pages.
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I

Imprint
To print new copy on a previously printed sheet, such as imprinting an employee's name on business
cards. Also called surprint.

Ink Jet Printing
Method of printing by spraying droplets of ink through computer-controlled nozzles. Also called
jet printing.
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K

Kiss Die Cut
To die cut the top layer, but not the backing layer, of self-adhesive paper. Also called face cut.
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L

Laminate
A thin transparent plastic sheet (coating) applied to usually a thick stock (covers, post cards, etc.)
providing protection against liquid and heavy use, and usually accents existing color, providing a
glossy (or lens) effect.

Landscape
Artist style in which width is greater than height. (Portrait is opposite.)

Laser Bond
Bond paper made especially smooth and dry to run well through laser printers.

Layout
A sample of the original providing (showing) position of printed work (direction, instructions) needed
and desired.

Letterpress
Method of printing from raised surfaces, either metal type or plates whose surfaces have been
etched away from image areas. Also called block printing.

Linen Finish
Embossed finish on text paper that simulates the pattern of linen cloth.

Looseseleaf
Binding method allowing insertion and removal of pages in a publication (e.g., trim-4-drill-3).
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M

Magenta
One of the four process colors.

Makeready
(1) All activities required to prepare a press or other machine to function for a specific printing or
bindery job, as compared to production run. Also called setup.
(2) Paper used in the makeready process at any stage in production. Makeready paper is part of
waste or spoilage.

Mechanical Bind
To bind using a comb, coil, ring binder, post or any other technique not requiring gluing, sewing
or stitching.

Metallic Ink
Ink containing powdered metal or pigments that simulate metal.

Metallic Paper
Paper coated with a thin film of plastic or pigment whose color and gloss simulate metal.

Midtones
In a photograph or illustration, tones created by dots between 30 percent and 70 percent of
coverage, as compared to highlights and shadows.

Mil 1/1000 Inch
The thickness of plastic films as printing substrates are expressed in mils.

Multicolor Printing
Printing in more than one ink color (but not four-color process). Also called polychrome printing.

M Weight
Weight of 1,000 sheets of paper in any specific size.
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N

Nested
Signatures assembled inside one another in the proper sequence for binding, as compared to
gathered. Also called inset.
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O

Offset Printing
Printing technique that transfers ink from a plate to a blanket to paper instead of directly from plate
to paper.

Opacity
(1) Characteristic of paper or other substrate that prevents printing on one side from showing
through the other side.
(2) Characteristic of ink that prevents the substrate from showing through.

Opaque
(1) Not transparent.
(2) To cover flaws in negative with tape or opaquing paint. Also called block out and spot.

Over Run
Additional printed matter beyond order. Overage policy varies in the printing industry. Advance
questions avoid blind knowledge.
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P

Page Count
Total number of pages that a publication has. Also called extent.

Pagination
In the book arena, the numbering of pages.

Panel
One page of a brochure, such as one panel of a rack brochure. One panel is on one side of the
paper. A letter-folded sheet has six panels, not three.

Parallel Fold
Method of folding. Two parallel folds to a sheet will produce 6 panels.

Perfect Bind
To bind sheets that have been ground at the spine and are held to the cover by glue. Also called
adhesive bind, cut-back bind, glue bind, paper bind, patent bind, perfecting bind, soft bind and soft
cover. See also Burst Perfect Bind.

Perfecting Press
Press capable of printing both sides of the paper during a single pass. Also called duplex press
and perfector.

Perforating
Taking place on a press or a binder machine, creating a line of small dotted wholes for the purpose
of tearing-off a part of a printed matter (usually straight lines, vertical or horizontal).

Plate
Piece of paper, metal, plastic or rubber carrying an image to be reproduced using a printing press.

Portrait
An art design in which the height is greater than the width. (Opposite of Landscape.)

Post Bind
To bind using a screw and post inserted through a hole in a pile of loose sheets.

Prepress
Camera work, color separations, stripping, platemaking and other prepress functions performed by
the printer, separator or a service bureau prior to printing. Also called preparation.

Prepress Proof
Any color proof made using ink jet, toner, dyes or overlays, as compared to a press proof printed
using ink. Also called dry proof and off-press proof.

Preprint
To print portions of sheets that will be used for later imprinting.

Press Check
Event at which makeready sheets from the press are examined before authorizing full production to begin.

Press Proof
Proof made on press using the plates, ink and paper specified for the job. Also called strike off and
trial proof.

Press Time
(1) Amount of time that one printing job spends on press, including time required for makeready.
(2) Time of day at which a printing job goes on press.

Printer Spreads
Mechanicals made so they are imposed for printing, as compared to reader spreads.

Printing
Any process that transfers to paper or another substrate an image from an original such as a film
negative or positive, electronic memory, stencil, die or plate.

Process Color (Inks)
The colors used for four-color process printing: yellow, magenta, cyan and black.
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R

Ream
500 sheets of paper.

Register
To place printing properly with regard to the edges of paper and other printing on the same sheet.
Such printing is said to be in register.

RGB
Abbreviation for red, green, blue, the additive color primaries.
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S

Satin Finish
Alternate term for dull finish on coated paper.

Score
To compress paper along a straight line so it folds more easily and accurately. Also called crease.

Screen Tint
Color created by dots instead of solid ink coverage. Also called Benday, fill pattern, screen tone,
shading, tint and tone.

Self Cover
Usually in the book arena, a publication not having a cover stock. A publication only using text
stock throughout.

Self Mailer
A printed item independent of an envelope. A printed item capable of travel in the mailing arena
independently.

Shadows
Darkest areas of a photograph or illustration, as compared to midtones and high-lights.

Sheetfed Press
Press that prints sheets of paper, as compared to a web press.

Sheetwise
Technique of printing one side of a sheet with one set of plates, then the other side of the sheet with
a set of different plates. Also called work and back.

Side Stitch
To bind by stapling through sheets along, one edge, as compared to saddle stitch. Also called cleat
stitch and side wire.

Signature
Printed sheet folded at least once, possibly many times, to become part of a book, magazine or
other publication.

Slip Sheets
Separate sheets (stock) independent from the original run positioned between the "printed run" for a
variety of reasons.

Solid
Any area of the sheet receiving 100 percent ink coverage, as compared to a screen tint.

Spine
Back or binding edge of a publication.

Spiral Bind
To bind using a spiral of continuous wire or plastic looped through holes. Also called coil bind.

Split Fountain
Technique of putting ink colors next to each other in the same ink fountain and printing them off the
same plate. Split fountains keep edges of colors distinct, as compared to rainbow fountains that
blend edges.

Spoilage
Paper that, due to mistakes or accidents, must be thrown away instead of delivered printed to the
customer, as compared to waste.

Spot Color or Varnish
One ink or varnish applied to portions of a sheet, as compared to flood or painted sheet.

Spread
(1) Two pages that face each other and are designed as one visual or production unit.
(2) Technique of slightly enlarging.
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T

Thermography
Method of printing using colorless resin powder that takes on the color of underlying ink. Also called
raised printing.

Tip In
Usually in the book arena, adding an additional page(s) beyond the normal process
(separate insertion).

Trap
To print one ink over another or to print a coating, such as varnish, over an ink. The first liquid traps
the second liquid. See also Dry Traps and Wet Traps.
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U

Uncoated Paper
Paper that has not been coated with clay. Also called offset paper.

UV Coating
Liquid applied to a printed sheet, then bonded and cured with ultraviolet light.
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V

Varnish
Liquid applied as a coating for protection and appearance.

Vellum Finish
Somewhat rough, toothy finish.

Vignette
Decorative design or illustration fade to white.
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W

Watermark
Translucent logo in paper created during manufacturing by slight embossing from a dandy roll while
paper is still approximately 90 percent water.

Wire Side
Side of the paper that rests against The Fourdrinier wire during papermaking, as compared to felt
side.
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