Abrasion Resistance
Ability to withstand the effects of repeated rubbing and scuffing. Also called scuff or rub resistance.

Abrasion Test
A test designed to determine the ability to withstand the effects of rubbing or scuffing.

Adhesion
The state in which two surfaces are held together by interfacial forces; measure of the strength with which one material sticks to another.

Adhesive
Any material which is applied to one or both surfaces to form a bond between the two.

Age Resistance or Shelf Life
The resistance to deterioration by oxygen and ozone in the air, by heat and light, or by internal chemical action.

Artwork
The original design, including drawings and text, produced by the artist. All elements of the design from which the black and white art and printing plates are made; also refers to all of the black and white production art.

Back Printing
Printing on the underside of a transparent film; also called reverse printing.

Chalking
A condition of a printing ink in which the pigment is not properly bound to the paper and can be easily rubbed off as a powder.

Color Proof
A printed or simulated printed image of each process color (cyan, magenta, yellow and black) using inks, toners or dyes to give a simulated impression of the final printed reproduction.

Color Separation
Film intermediates made from the color originals to determine and reproduce the proportional amount of cyan, magenta, yellow and black in the original. These films are used to produce printing plates for each color.

Continuous Tone
A photographic image that has not been screened and contained graduated tones from black to white.

Copy
Material, including art and text, submitted for reproduction. The term is also used to refer to the final printed result.

Die Cut
(Verb) To punch out with a sharp tool.
(Noun) Cleft, gash, slit or notch left from punching out operation.

Dies
Any of various sharp cutting forms, rotary or flat, used to cut desired shapes from paper, paperboard or other stocks. Also a carryover term for printing plates in flexo industries previously letterpress which in early years used metal printing plates, i.e., corrugated, publications, etc.

Face Printing
Printing on the outer surface of a transparent substrate in contrast to printing on the back (reverse) of film.

Finish
The degree of gloss or flatness of a surface.

Finish, Matte
A dull finish; flat.

Finish, Satin
A type of dull finish, somewhat finer than matte.

Flameproof
No readily ignited and does not propagate flame under test conditions. Flameproof materials are usually combustible materials with the addition of some treatment or coating to modify their burning prosperities.

Flame Resistant
Being capable of burning when in contact with flame, but not continuing to burn when the flame is removed.

Flame Retardant
A chemical used in treating a material so that it will not support combustion.

Flexography
A method of direct rotary printing using resilient raised image printing plates, affixed to variable repeat plate cylinders, inked by a roll or doctor-blade-wiped engraved metal roll, carrying fluid or paste-type inks to virtually any substrate.

Four-Color Process
Printing with yellow, magenta and cyan color inks plus black, using screens to create all other colors.

Gloss
The ability of a surface to reflect light.

Gloss Finish
A smooth finish of paper or paperboard with a shiny or lustrous appearance.

Grain Direction
The direction of paper parallel with the direction of movement on the paper machine. The direction at right angles to the machine direction is called the cross-machine direction or simply cross direction.

Halftone
Photographic image formed by a pattern of discrete dot sizes. Dots vary in area and shape but have uniform density. Creates the illusion of continuous tone when seen at a distance.

In-Line Press
A press coupled to another operation such as bag making, sheeting, die cutting, creasing, etc. A multi-color press in which the color stations are mounted horizontally in a line.

Laminate
(Noun) A product made by bonding together two or more layers of material or materials.
(Verb) To unite layers of materials with adhesives.

Moiré
An interference pattern caused by the out of register overlap of two or more regular patterns such as dots or lines. In flexographic printing it can be caused by incorrect relative screen of the anilox rolls and halftone plate. Screen angles are selected to minimize this pattern.

O.D.
Outside diameter of a part, generally a cylinder or roll. Outside dimensions of a container, package or part.

Opacity
The quality or state of substance that caused it to obstruct rays of light. The hiding quality of an ink coating or other substance; opposite of transparency.

Opaque
Impervious to light rays. A paint exhibiting light obstructive qualities used to block out areas on a photographic negative not wanted on the plate. To apply opaque materials.

Overlay
Transparent sheet attached to copy used to indicate changes, color separation, etc.

Polyethylene
A synthetic resin of high molecular weight resulting from the polymerization of ethylene gas under pressure.

Polypropylene
A synthetic resin of high molecular weight resulting from the polymerization of propylene gas.

Polystyrene
A thermoplastic material derived from the polymerization of styrene.

Printing, Flexographic
The method of direct rotary printing using resilient, raised image printing plates, affixable to plate cylinders of various repeat lengths, inked by a roll or doctor-blade-wiped metering roll, carrying fluid or paste type inks to virtually any substrate.

Process Color
Halftone color printing created by the color separation process whereby a piece of copy is broken down the primary colors – yellow, cyan, magenta plus black – to product individual halftones and these are combined at the press to produce the complete range of colors of the original.

Reverse printing
Printing on the underside of a transparent film. Design in which the copy is “dropped-out” and the background is printed.

Resins
Natural or synthetic complex organic substances with no sharp melting point which in solvent solution form the binder portion of the flexographic ink.

Scuff
(Verb) The action of rubbing against with applied pressure.
(Noun) The damage which has taken place through a rubbing.

Size (or Sizing)
The addition of materials to a papermaking furnish or the application of materials to the surface of paper and paperboard to provide resistance to liquid penetration.

Slit
To cut rolls of stock to specified widths. Either rotary or stationary knives or blades are used with mechanical unwinding and rewinding devices.

Translucency
The diffuse transmission of light.

Transparency
A photographic positive on a clear or transparent support. Viewed by transmitted light. Commonly the term is applied to full color transparencies such as Kodachromes, etc.

Transparent
The unobstructed transmission of light; clear.

Trapping
The overlapping of various colors in a design to prevent their separating and not touching as a result of registration variable during printing. Also the condition of printing ink on ink or superimposing one color on another, in which the first-down ink film is sufficiently dry when the next one is printed over it to properly hide the first down color.

Ultraviolet (UV) Lights
Generally they are fluorescent tubes that emit ultraviolet light rather than normal fluorescent or incandescent light.

Varnish
The binder component of an ink. Also resin.

Vinyl
Informal generic term for any of the vinyl resins, or for film or other products made from the.