Accordion Fold
Two or more parallel folds that alternate direction, allowing the piece to open and close like an accordion.
Print Knowledge · Made Useful
Printing Terms Made Clear.
Plain-language explanations of words you may hear while planning, designing, printing, binding, finishing, and mailing a project.
Quick Reference
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A
Against the Grain
Folding paper across its fiber direction. This can make folding harder and may cause heavier stocks to crack.
B
Bitmap
A digital image built from individual pixels. Its quality depends on the number of pixels available at the final printed size.
Bleed
Artwork that extends beyond the final trim edge, commonly by 0.125 inch, so color or images reach the edge after cutting.
Brightness
A measurement of how much blue light a paper reflects. Brighter papers often make colors appear cleaner and more vivid.
C
Caliper
The physical thickness of paper or board, usually measured in thousandths of an inch, points, or mils.
CMYK
Cyan, magenta, yellow, and black—the four process inks used together to reproduce full-color images.
Coated Paper
Paper treated for a smoother, less absorbent surface that can improve detail, color density, and finish consistency.
Collate
To gather sheets or sections in the correct sequence before binding, inserting, or packaging.
Cover Stock
A heavier paper category used for covers, postcards, folders, cards, and pieces that need more rigidity.
Crop Marks
Fine lines outside the finished area that show where a printed sheet should be cut to its final size.
D
Die Cutting
Using a custom cutting tool to create a shape, opening, score, perforation, emboss, or other special feature.
Digital Foil
Foil applied selectively through a digital embellishment process without a traditional stamping die. It can create metallic, colored, or specialty accents.
Digital Printing
A plateless process that prints from digital files. It is well suited to shorter runs, fast turns, and variable content.
Dimensional Varnish
A clear varnish built up in selected areas to create raised gloss, texture, or tactile emphasis on a printed piece.
DPI (Dots Per Inch)
A measure of output resolution describing how many printed dots a device can place within one inch.
E
Embossing
Pressing paper between dies to create a raised design. A recessed design is called debossing.
F
Flood UV
A glossy ultraviolet-cured coating applied across the full printed surface rather than only to selected areas.
Foil Stamping
Applying metallic, pigmented, or specialty foil to a surface using heat, pressure, and a die.
Font
A specific style and weight within a typeface family, including its letters, numbers, punctuation, and symbols.
G
G7
A print-quality method used to keep neutral gray balance and overall color appearance consistent across presses and printing processes.
Gloss Finish
A smooth, reflective surface that can increase color saturation and image contrast.
Grain
The main direction of fibers in paper. Grain direction affects folding, binding, feeding, and curl.
Gutter
The inside margin between facing pages or space near a binding edge where content can become difficult to see.
H
Halftone
A pattern of dots that creates the appearance of tones, allowing photographs and shading to be printed with ink.
Hard Proof
A physical proof printed on paper or another material, rather than a PDF viewed on a screen.
Holographic Foil
A specialty foil that reflects shifting, multicolored light effects and can be applied to selected design areas.
I
Imposition
Arranging pages on a press sheet so they appear in the correct order after folding, binding, and trimming.
J
JPEG / JPG
A compressed image format commonly used for photographs. Repeated saving can reduce image quality.
L
Lamination
Bonding clear plastic film to a printed sheet for protection, durability, texture, or appearance.
M
Make-ready
The setup work completed before a production run, including loading materials, adjusting equipment, and bringing color into specification.
Matte Finish
A low-sheen surface that reduces glare and creates a softer, more subdued appearance.
O
Offset Printing
A process that transfers ink from a plate to a rubber blanket and then to paper. It is efficient for larger quantities and color-critical work.
Opacity
A paper’s ability to prevent printing or images on the opposite side from showing through.
Overprint
Printing one color or object directly over another instead of removing the area beneath it.
Overages
Extra copies produced to account for setup, finishing, quality control, or normal production variation.
P
Pagination
The numbering, organization, and sequence of pages in a document or publication.
A file format that preserves page layout, fonts, images, and graphics. A properly prepared PDF is preferred for most print jobs.
Perfect Binding
A method that secures pages to a wraparound cover with adhesive, creating a clean square spine.
PMS (Pantone Matching System)
A standardized system for identifying premixed spot colors so brand and specialty colors can be specified consistently.
PPI (Pixels Per Inch)
The number of image pixels within one inch. About 300 PPI at final size is a practical target for most printed images.
Preflight
A technical review of artwork for page size, bleed, fonts, image resolution, color setup, and production requirements.
Proof
A preview used to check content, layout, color, and specifications before the full production run.
R
Register
The precise alignment of colors, images, folds, cuts, or other production elements.
Resolution
The amount of detail in a digital image or output device. Low-resolution images may look soft or pixelated in print.
RGB
Red, green, and blue light used by screens and cameras. RGB artwork is normally converted or managed for CMYK printing.
RIP
A raster image processor converts page data into the dot pattern a printing device uses to reproduce the image.
S
Saddle Stitch
A binding method that staples folded sheets through the center fold, commonly used for booklets and catalogs.
Score
A compressed channel placed in paper or cover stock to guide a cleaner, more accurate fold.
Signature
A press sheet printed with multiple pages and folded into a section for binding in the correct sequence.
Soft Proof
A digital proof viewed on a monitor, usually as a PDF, for checking content, layout, and approximate color.
Soft-Touch Lamination
A clear film with a smooth, velvety feel applied to a printed sheet for appearance, texture, and surface protection.
Spot Color
A premixed ink used when a specific brand color or special effect is needed instead of building it from CMYK.
Stock
The paper, board, plastic, or other material selected as the surface for printing.
Substrate
Any material that receives printing or coating, including paper, board, plastic, fabric, film, and metal.
T
Text Stock
A flexible paper category commonly used for interior pages, brochures, flyers, catalogs, and booklets.
Trapping
A small overlap between neighboring colors that helps prevent white gaps caused by normal registration variation.
Trim Size
The final width and height of a printed piece after it has been cut.
V
Variable-Data Foiling
Digital foil in which names, numbers, images, or other foil elements can change from one printed piece to the next.
Variable Data Printing
Printing in which text, images, or other content can change from one piece to the next using a data file.
W
With the Grain
Folding or binding parallel to the paper fibers, which usually produces a smoother fold and a more flexible finished piece.
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