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Glite Dictionary
type slug

type slug

9.9
A thin metal strip placed between words to make space in printing
  • noun
  • Archaic
translation icon : margen tipo
  • The printer inserted a type slug between the words to adjust the spacing.

Examples

  • A misplaced type slug caused uneven spacing in the old newspaper.

  • Original typesetting often required placing a type slug in empty areas.

  • The printer used a type slug for proper spacing.

  • I need to find some type slugs for my typesetting project.

  • The printer inserted a type slug between the words to adjust the spacing.

  • A misplaced type slug caused uneven spacing in the old newspaper.

  • Original typesetting often required placing a type slug in empty areas.

Synonyms

slug
vstype slug
  • Archaic
1 9.6

A thin piece of metal used to space lines in printing

is the general term for such a spacing metal strip without details

Surface Forms

slug singular
slugs plural

Morphology

type + slug

Both constituents are literal typesetting items—'type' (printing letters/blocks) and 'slug' (a small metal spacer)—so the compound meaning (a piece of type metal used for spacing) is directly compositional. Because the sense is literal and domain-specific rather than idiomatic, a B1 learner who knows both words can reasonably infer the MWE's meaning.

Etymology

Type slug comes from old printing shops. A 'slug' was a small metal piece put between type, the letters used to print a page, to make space, so a type slug means that metal piece used for spacing.