Book Printing Terms
Learn the names of common physical parts of a printed book.
The outermost part of a book. The front cover usually displays the book’s title, author, and often an image or design to...
The outer part at the back of a book. The back cover often has a summary, reviews, or a barcode, giving readers a quick...
The center part of a book that connects the front and back covers. It typically displays the title, author, and publishe...
The main body of a book, made up of the pages stacked together before the cover is added. The cover and endsheets aren’t...
An important part of a hardcover book. It’s the paper that connects the book block to the cover, located at the beginnin...
The pastedown is the half of the endsheet that’s glued to the inside of the book’s cover. It’s the part you see when you...
The flyleaf is the free half of the endsheet, which is a sheet (endsheet), folded in half to connect the cover and book...
The headband is a small strip of fabric or thread at the top of a hardcover book’s spine. It reinforces the binding and...
The tailband is a small strip at the bottom of a hardcover book’s spine, reinforcing the binding. It’s identical to the...
It’s a thin strip of fabric attached to the top of a book’s spine. This strip functions as a bookmark and adds a decorat...
It’s a removable paper cover wrapped around a hardcover book. It can vary in specs, like thickness or lamination, to sui...
The jacket flap is the folded part of a dust jacket that tucks inside the front or back cover, usually about 3-5 inches...
Sometimes called an obi or book band, is a strip of paper wrapped around a book’s middle. It highlights extras like awar...
A tip-in page is a sheet bound back into a book after it’s fully constructed. It serves as a fix, for pages that planned...
A tissue guard is a thin, semi-transparent sheet placed over an illustration page. In the past, text and illustration pa...
A page that extends beyond the book’s standard size when unfolded, perfect for maps, wide illustrations, or detailed cha...
A paperback cover with folded extensions that mimic dust jacket flaps. These flaps protect the cover corners for added d...
The gutter refers to the inner margin area where the pages join the spine. It’s the space on each page next to the bindi...
The book edge refers to the outer boundaries of the book’s pages as fore-edge, head, and tail. The fore-edge is the side...
The hinge is the bend line between the cover and spine on a hardcover book. Hardcover books are made with three pieces o...
Mull, also called Super in some British regions, refers to the lightweight fabric glued to the book spine of a hardcover...
Lining paper, also called liner is a strip or piece of paper used for reinforcement on the spine or boards of a hardcove...
It is used to reference the position of the book’s page edges. Fore-edge: Outer edge opposite the spine. Head edge: Top...
