Desktop Publishing Vocabulary Worksheet

Press Print worksheet to match twelve desktop publishing terms, from layout and font to text box, to their meanings.

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NameDateMade at homeroomtools.comDraw a line from each one on the left to its partner on the right.Desktop publishing vocabularylayoutfontmargincolumntemplatealignmentheaderfootergutterorientationtext boxdesktop publishingthe blank space around the textat a page's edgestext that runs above the maintext on each pagetext that runs below the maintext on each pagea ready-made file that newdocuments are built froman upright block of text besideothers on a pagethe strip of empty space betweentwo columnshow text lines up: left, right,centered or justifiedthe letters and symbols of onedesign in one stylewhether a page is turned uprightor on its sidea bordered block of words set offfrom the restdesigning print-ready pages on apersonal computerthe plan for where each item sitson a page
NameDateMade at homeroomtools.comDraw a line from each one on the left to its partner on the right.Desktop publishing vocabularyAnswer keylayoutfontmargincolumntemplatealignmentheaderfootergutterorientationtext boxdesktop publishingthe blank space around the textat a page's edgestext that runs above the maintext on each pagetext that runs below the maintext on each pagea ready-made file that newdocuments are built froman upright block of text besideothers on a pagethe strip of empty space betweentwo columnshow text lines up: left, right,centered or justifiedthe letters and symbols of onedesign in one stylewhether a page is turned uprightor on its sidea bordered block of words set offfrom the restdesigning print-ready pages on apersonal computerthe plan for where each item sitson a page
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All 36 terms

Page layout 12

  • alignment How text lines up: left, right, centered or justified. "Center alignment suits a short title."
  • column An upright block of text beside others on a page. "The newsletter has three columns on each page."
  • desktop publishing Designing print-ready pages on a personal computer. "Our class used desktop publishing to make a yearbook page."
  • font The letters and symbols of one design in one style. "The title is set in a bigger font than the story."
  • footer Text that runs below the main text on each page. "The page numbers sit in the footer."
  • gutter The strip of empty space between two columns. "A wider gutter keeps the two columns apart."
  • header Text that runs above the main text on each page. "The header shows the club's name on each page."
  • layout The plan for where each item sits on a page. "She moved the photo to the top to fix the layout."
  • margin The blank space around the text at a page's edges. "A wide margin leaves room for notes."
  • orientation Whether a page is turned upright or on its side. "Change the orientation to landscape for a wide chart."
  • template A ready-made file that new documents are built from. "He opened a flyer template and typed in the date."
  • text box A bordered block of words set off from the rest. "Put the phone number in a text box near the bottom."
Show all 36 terms (24 more)

Type 12

  • body text The main reading text, not the titles or captions. "Keep the body text in one plain font."
  • boldface Type set in heavy, dark strokes. "The warning is printed in boldface."
  • dingbat A printed ornament or symbol, such as a star or arrow. "A star-shaped dingbat marks each item in the list."
  • drop cap A large first letter that dips into the lines below. "The chapter opens with a drop cap three lines tall."
  • hyphenation The use of hyphens, as when a word splits at a line end. "Turn off hyphenation so no word is split in two."
  • kerning Fine-tuning how far apart a pair of letters sit. "Kerning closed the gap between the A and the V."
  • leading The space between one line of type and the next. "She added leading so the lines did not look crowded."
  • point size How big type is, measured in points. "Raise the point size from 12 to 14 for the back row."
  • sans serif A letter style with no small strokes at the ends. "We set the poster title in sans serif."
  • serif A tiny tail at the tip of a stroke in a letter. "Look for the serif at the foot of the capital T."
  • small caps Capital letters made as short as lowercase ones. "The author's name is set in small caps."
  • typeface The design shared by a whole family of letters. "Pick one typeface for headings and another for the story."

Pictures and printing 12

  • bleed Print that runs past where the page will be trimmed. "The blue background needs a bleed so no white edge shows."
  • graphic A picture, drawing or diagram placed on a page. "Add a graphic of a bus beside the trip details."
  • hard copy A document printed on paper, not shown on a screen. "Bring a hard copy of the flyer to the meeting."
  • masthead The list of a publication's staff and publisher. "Her name is on the masthead as the editor."
  • page break The point where one page ends and the next begins. "Insert a page break so the list starts on a new page."
  • proofread To read a text closely to find and fix its mistakes. "Proofread the newsletter before you print fifty copies."
  • pull quote A line lifted from the story and shown in large type. "The pull quote sits in large type between the two columns."
  • resize To make a picture or box larger or smaller. "Resize the photo so it fits in one column."
  • toner Powder that laser printers and copiers print with. "The printer stopped because it ran out of toner."
  • typo A small mistake made while typing. "A typo turned form into from in the headline."
  • watermark A faint design placed behind the text of a page. "The word DRAFT runs across the page as a watermark."
  • WYSIWYG Showing on screen just what will come out in print. "In a WYSIWYG program the page on screen matches the printout."

How this list was compiled: Term list chosen for this site on 2026-10-12. Each meaning is written in our own words and was checked that day in two references: the entry for the term in Wiktionary, the free dictionary (https://en.wiktionary.org/), whose text is under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike license, and the entry in the Cambridge Dictionary (https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/). Where a dictionary has no entry or no sense of printing and page design, the reference is an article of English Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/), whose text is under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike license: Column (typography) for gutter; Page orientation for orientation; Typographic alignment for alignment; Leading, Bleed (printing), Pull quote and Body text for the terms they are named after; Point (typography) for point size; Initial for drop cap; and Syllabification for hyphenation at the end of a line. Point size has no entry in either dictionary and rests on its article and on the Wiktionary entry point. Text box, drop cap, body text and pull quote have no entry in the Cambridge Dictionary, and text box rests on its Wiktionary entry alone. Masthead is the American sense, read in both dictionaries and in the article Masthead (American publishing). The answers under the list rest on the articles Point (typography), Page orientation, Typographic alignment and WYSIWYG. The sentence in quotation marks after each meaning is our own. Licence: own work

How it works

This desktop publishing vocabulary worksheet is a matching sheet for a computer or business class: twelve terms in one column, their meanings shuffled in the other. Three sets cover page layout, type, then pictures and printing.

Read the full guide

Page layout terms: layout, font, margin, column

Set opens on Page layout: layout, font, margin, column, template, alignment, header, footer, gutter, orientation, text box and desktop publishing. Type prints typeface, serif, sans serif, boldface, point size, leading, kerning, drop cap, small caps, body text, hyphenation and dingbat.

Pictures and printing terms

The third set has graphic, toner, watermark, pull quote, masthead, bleed, hard copy, proofread, typo, resize, page break and WYSIWYG. Under the tool each term has a sentence that uses it, such as "Kerning closed the gap between the A and the V."

Questions and answers

How big is a point in desktop publishing?

One seventy-second of an inch, about 0.35 millimeters, and twelve points make one pica. It became the usual standard after desktop publishing arrived in the 1980s and 1990s.

What is the difference between portrait and landscape orientation?

On a portrait page the height is the longer side; on a landscape page the width is. Both names come from visual art: a portrait takes in a face and upper body, a landscape the horizon.

What is justified text?

Text that lines up along the left margin while the spaces between letters and words are adjusted, so every line also ends flush at the right margin. It is also called fully justified. Flush left text has a ragged right edge.

What does WYSIWYG stand for?

What you see is what you get. The word describes software in which you edit a page in a form that looks like the finished product, whether that is a printed document, a web page or a slide presentation.

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