Typography Glossary

Macros Open subroutines, often used to create new commands.

Majuscule A capital (or other large) letter.

Margin The blank space to the left, right, above, and below the text on a page. Margins may contain up to 50% of the area of a well-designed book page.

Marginalia Notes, titles, summaries, or other information in the margins of a document.

Matrix The copper block onto which the steel die for a letter was stamped. The matrix served as the mold for the face of a type or for a printing plate.

Markup language A formatting language, that includes textual instructions to the formatter, intermingled with the text to be formatted. For example, HTML & LaTeX.

Mechanical A camera-ready original, ready for reproduction by off, set printing.

METAFONT Font production language developed by Donald Knuth.

Metal type Typesetting technology prior to phototypesetting, a kind of relief printing. See letterpress, linotype and monotype.

Minuscule Archaic term for a lowercase letter, see also majuscule.

Modeless editor An editor without states (such as text versus command mode) in the user interface.

Modern Type Style Letterforms with flat serifs, abrupt and exaggerated strokes, and vertical shading. Originated by Francois Didot in the late 18th century, this style represented a casting away of the decorative baggage of the rococo era.

Monochrome display Display that presents images in black and white (or some other pair of foreground and background colours). Some monochrome displays are capable of greyscale, that is, gradations of intensity.

Monospaced printing Printing in which each letter or symbol occupies the same horizontal space.

Monotype Typesetting machine invented in 1893 by Tolbert Lanston that casts individual letters and assembles them into a block of type, following instructions punched on a paper tape.

Mood of type The subjective feeling imparted by a typeface, layout, or page of type.

Movable type What Gutenberg invented-individual letters cast on independent metal bodies, for assembly into blocks for printing.

INDEX
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A BRIEF HISTORY OF TYPE
TYPE CLASSIFICATION
THE FONT POOL
PAGE LAYOUT GUIDE
LOGO TYPE GUIDE
MIXING TYPE
TYPOGRAPHY SOFTWARE
TYPE CHOICE

Sources:

Rubinststein, Richard. [1988] Digial Typography: An Introduction to Type and Composition for Computer System Design. Addison-Wesley Publishing Company.
Blue Dot's typoGRAPHIC.
The comp.fonts FAQ.

There have been .
© Kevin Woodward 1997.

	Macros	Open subroutines, often used to create new commands.
	Majuscule	A capital (or other large) letter.
	Margin	The blank space to the left, right, above, and below the text on a page. Margins may contain up to 50% of the area of a well-designed book page.
	Marginalia	Notes, titles, summaries, or other information in the margins of a document.
	Matrix	The copper block onto which the steel die for a letter was stamped. The matrix served as the mold for the face of a type or for a printing plate.
	Markup language	A formatting language, that includes textual instructions to the formatter, intermingled with the text to be formatted. For example, HTML & LaTeX.
	Mechanical	A camera-ready original, ready for reproduction by off, set printing.
	METAFONT	Font production language developed by Donald Knuth.
	Metal type	Typesetting technology prior to phototypesetting, a kind of relief printing. See letterpress, linotype and monotype.
	Minuscule	Archaic term for a lowercase letter, see also majuscule.
	Modeless editor	An editor without states (such as text versus command mode) in the user interface.
	Modern Type Style	Letterforms with flat serifs, abrupt and exaggerated strokes, and vertical shading. Originated by Francois Didot in the late 18th century, this style represented a casting away of the decorative baggage of the rococo era.
	Monochrome display	Display that presents images in black and white (or some other pair of foreground and background colours). Some monochrome displays are capable of greyscale, that is, gradations of intensity.
	Monospaced printing	Printing in which each letter or symbol occupies the same horizontal space.
	Monotype	Typesetting machine invented in 1893 by Tolbert Lanston that casts individual letters and assembles them into a block of type, following instructions punched on a paper tape.
	Mood of type	The subjective feeling imparted by a typeface, layout, or page of type.
	Movable type	What Gutenberg invented-individual letters cast on independent metal bodies, for assembly into blocks for printing.