100+ Words Related to Design

October 6, 2023

In the modern world, art and design are everywhere. Some are digital, while others appear in printed forms. Whatever medium you prefer, being familiar with words related to design can give you an upper hand whenever you are talking about anything connected to design.

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Words Related to Art

Table of Contents

CMYK Colors

You will often see CMYK Colors among lists of words related to design. The letters stand for: Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, and Key/Black. CMYK is the basic mode for mixing colors in printed designs. This design term is basically a four-color process that helps designers create colors of high quality in print.

Typeface

Design terminology is sometimes complex and difficult to understand. For instance, you may have heard people using “typeface” and “font” interchangeably. In fact, they are two words related to design that are associated with each other yet separate in meaning.

A typeface is a print style. Font, on the other hand, is a variation of a typeface. You’ve probably heard of typefaces such as Times New Roman or Georgia. If you adapt the size, width, or weight of the typeface, you are applying a font to it.

Rule of Thirds

The rule of thirds has to do with layout. To apply the rule of thirds, you would divide an empty page or canvas into three equal rows and columns. The intersections created by placing a grid of thirds onto a page are known in the design industry as “hot spots.” This basic rule of design says that you should always try to place your main subject in these spots.

Lorem Ipsum

Lorem ipsum derives from a Latin phrase that, when you translate it to English, means “pain itself.” In design, this phrase refers to using text as a placeholder to take up space on a page without providing meaningful content.

Lorem ipsum text typically includes all letters of the alphabet. It’s a way for you to see how your actual text will look on the page before you have inserted it.

Negative Space

A basic study of design includes the concept of negative space. You might also refer to it as “white space.” It is the space or area in a design composition that surrounds the elements or subjects featured on the page.

A skilled designer knows how to use negative space to draw focus toward the positive space. Positive space, of course, is the area of the page that contains a subject or element.

Pantone Matching System (PMS)

The word “pantone” basically means “all colors.” If you are learning about graphic design, you may come across the term “Pantone Matching System” or PMS for short.

This design term is a system that has been in use since 1963. Its purpose is to provide a standardized system to match colors across various printed designs.

DPI

DPI is an abbreviation for the design phrase “dots per inch.” If you’re using a printer to produce an image, you can measure its DPI. This means that you are determining how many individual ink droplets will be used per inch to produce the printed image.

PPI

If you have worked with digital design, you’re probably familiar with the word “pixel.” The abbreviated phrase “PPI” stands for “Pixels Per Inch.” It is similar to DPI but used in reference to digital images as opposed to images in print.

Motif

A word that is similar in meaning to “motif” is “theme.” If you’re using a you have a “motif,” you’re carrying a particular theme throughout the design. There are several types of common motifs in design, including plant, floral, geometrical, traditional, and abstract. Think of “motif” as a recurring theme, element, or idea that appears in various spaces throughout a particular design.