Typography Terms
As most graphic designers know, the rabbit-hole of typography is deep. When is comes to type, designers can get into the nerdiest levels of conversation during critiques and reviews. Especially when it comes to typographic terms. In other words, the lingo, or typography vocabulary.
So do you want to sound like a “type-beast”? Scroll down to see our massive list of typography terms.
Aperture
The opening of a partially enclosed counter shape
Apex
The point at the top of a letter where two strokes meet
Arc
The curved part of a letter at the end of a straight stem
Arm
A straight or curved portion of a letter that extends upwards or outwards
Ascender
The vertical stroke on lower case letters that extends above the x-height
Ascender Line
An invisible line marking the height of all ascenders in a font
Axis / Stress
An invisible line dissecting the glyph from top to bottom at its thinnest point
Ball Terminal
Terminal with a circular or oval shape
Baseline
The imaginary line upon which a letter rests
Beak
A decorative stroke at the end of the arm of a letter, like a serif, but usually more pronounced.
Bilateral Serif
Serif or slab serif extending to both sides of a main stroke
Bowl
A fully closed round part of a letter
Bracket
A curved or wedge-like connection between the stem and serif
Cap Height
The height of a capital letter above the baseline for a particular typeface
Counter
The area of a letter that is entirely or partially enclosed
Crossbar
The horizontal stroke in letters, usually across the middle of uppercase letters like A and H
Cross Stroke
A horizontal stroke that intersects the stem of a lowercase t or f
Crotch
An acute, inside angle where two strokes meet
Descender
The portion of a letter that extends below the baseline of a font
Descender Line
The invisible line marking the lowest point of the descenders within a font
Ear
A decorative flourish usually on the upper right side of the bowl
Eye
Specifically the enclosed space in a lowercase 'e'
Finial
a somewhat tapered curved end on letters such as the bottom of c or e
Foot
The part of a stem that rests on the baseline
Gadzook
An embellishment in a ligature that is not originally part of either letter
Glyph
A specific shape, design, or representation of a character
Grotesk
German name for sans serif typefaces
Hairline
A name for the lightest weight within a font family. Hairline can also refer to the thinnest stroke of a letter
Halbfett
German name for the semi-bold weight in a font family
Hook
A curved, protruding stroke in a terminal, usually found on a lowercase f
Inktrap
A feature of certain typefaces designed for printing in small sizes
Joint/Juncture
The point where a stroke connects to a stem
Leg
The lower, down sloping stroke of a letter, most common is a K or R
Ligature
Where two or more letters are joined as a single glyph
Link/Neck
The small, usually curved stroke that connects the bowl and loop of a g
Loop
The enclosed or partially enclosed counter below the baseline that is connected to the bowl by a link
Midline
The imaginary line at which all non-ascending letters stop
Overshoot
The degree to which a letter extends higher or lower than a comparably sized "flat" letter
Pro
Typeface supports additional languages including Central European and Cyrillic and/or Greek
Shoulder
The curved stroke aiming downward from a stem
Small Caps
Lowercase characters typeset with glyphs that resemble uppercase letters but reduced in height and weight
Spine
The main left to right curving stroke in the letter S
Spur
The small protruding part on a main stroke
Stem
A vertical stroke in a character
Swash
An exaggerated decorative serif, terminal or tail
Tail
The descending, often decorative stroke on the letter Q or the descending, often curved diagonal stroke on K or R
Taper
The thinner and/or refined end of a stroke
Terminal
The end of a stroke that doesn’t have a serif
Tittle
A small distinguishing mark, such as an diacritic on a lowercase i or j
Vertex
The outside point at the bottom or top of a character where two strokes meet
Weight
The thickness of the character outlines relative to their height
X-Height
The distance between the baseline and the mean line of lower-case letters
