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typography

typography

7 5.7
The way people arrange letters on a page or screen to make text clear and easy to read
  • noun
  • /taɪˈpɒɡrəfi/
  • Specialized
translation icon : tipografía
  • Good typography makes the text easier to read and more visually appealing.
  • visual typography
  • words and typography

So I went down the typography typographic rabbit hole.

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Examples

  • Like the self-portrait, the Pelikan image is a compendium of various artistic media—typography, phototransfer, drawing.

    Academic text (2000)
  • Aided by a series of lantern slides, Walker's lecture was a visual tour through the history of typography.

    Academic text (2017)
  • The Importance of Typography in Web Design and How It Can Affect Traffic to Your Site.

    Blog text (17)
  • In literature, "experiments" in language and typography sought to disturb old patterns of reading.

    Academic text (2017)
  • It's hard to imagine someone who enjoys the typography of print getting into such a pixelated reading experience.

    Blog text (13)
  • It's not just beautiful to look at with the nicest typography treatment ever seen; it's also infinitely malleable.

    Blog text (6)
  • Gray's breezy posts focus largely on grammar, writing, editing, and even typography.

    Academic text (2011)
  • We cover news, tutorials, and hot topics such as responsive design, usability, typography, freelancing, and much more.

    Blog text (9)
  • A design system should stabilize before you invest in codifying layouts, grids, typography, patterns, and components.

    Blog text (10)
  • Is it meant to produce the antithesis of distracting modern typography: the absolute attentiveness of an eminently readable text expunged of all distracting features?

    Academic text (2017)

Synonyms

composition
vstypography
  • Archaic
3 6.4

Setting text by hand or machine to make pages for print

is broader, covering arranging type for clear visual presentation on screen and print
typesetting
vstypography
  • Specialized
2 4.6

Putting text and pictures on a page for print or screen

is broader, focusing on visual clarity and attractiveness across print and screen

How Complex

typography
  • Specialized
7 5.7
plaintext
  • Specialized
3.9

Surface Forms

typography singular
typographies plural

Morphology

typography = type (semi-transparent) = type + graphy

The word is built from 'type' plus the learned suffix '-graphy', but the technical sense and spelling make it only partly predictable for an average learner.

Etymology

Typography comes from two Greek parts: typo- meaning 'mark' or 'type' and -graphy meaning 'writing'. Like the everyday word type, which means the letter shape used in printing, typography is the art of arranging those marks and letters so written language is clear and attractive.