Glossary of Terms

Blocks
Sections of text which can, for example, be moved and copied as a single unit.
Bold
A type style that makes the text to which it is applied heavier than the surrounding text.
Bullet
Mark used to set off a small block of text or individual items on a list.
Clip Art
Vector graphic-based pictures.
Copy
To take a copy of the currently selected items.
Crop
To chop out a section of an image.
Cut
To take a copy and remove the currently selected items.
Dialog Box
Object-orientated selection facility.
Embed
To copy an object from one document to another.
Footer
A design element that is repeated at the bottom of each page.
Example: page numbers. cf: header.
Format
The structure or appearance of a part of a document. Also to change the appearance of selected text.
Font
A set of characters available in the same typeface, style, size and stroke weight.
Example: Arial, Times New Roman.
Grammar Checker
A tool that checks the grammar within a document and usually tries to provide guidance as to correct usage.
Header
A section of text which is repeated at the top of every page.
Example: Chapter titles. cf: footer.
Italic
A type style in which the characters have a more cursive appearance than in a normal typeface and are evenly slanted towards the right.
Link
To place an object in one or more documents such that alteration in the source documents gives automatic changes in the destination documents.
Menu Command
Command selected from a drop-down menu.
Merge
To combine two or more documents into a single document.
Non-proportional
A set of characters in a particular style and size in which a fixed amount of horizontal space is allocated to each character.
cf: proportional.
OCR
Optical Character Recognition.
Orphan
A single line of text at the bottom of a page.
cf: Widow.
Outline
A word processing facility which allows the user to concentrate on the structure and organisation of a document rather than its format.
Page Layout
The layout of the page with regard to features such as margins, headers, footers, page length, page width and page numbers.
Paste
To insert a previously copied or cut section.
Proportional
A set of characters in a particular style and size in which a variable amount of horizontal space is allocated to each character.
cf: Non-proportional.
Roman
A typeface or type style in which the characters are upright.
Example: Times New Roman.
Ruler
Facility which shows the scaled position of the cursor in the document.
Sans serif
A typeface with a more geometric appearance than a serif typeface, ie. it does not contain serifs. Used more frequently in display type such as headlines.
Example: Arial. cf: Serif.
Scale
To change the size of an image in proportion to the original.
Search
The software looks for a specific combination of characters from a point selected by the user.
Search and Replace
Matched words will be replaced with another word or combination of words.
Serif
A typeface whose characters contain short lines or ornaments at the upper and lower ends of the stroke. Considered easier to read for large bodies of text.
Example: Times New Roman. cf: Sans serif.
Subscript
Text - usually in a smaller point size - positioned below the normal base line.
Superscript
Text - usually in a smaller point size - positioned above the normal base line.
Template
A preformatted page layout which can contain headers, footers and embedded objects.
Thesaurus
A word processing facility that allows the user to find alternatives to a given word.
Toggle
To alternate between two states.
Example: Bold on, bold off.
Toolbar
A pictorial menu of buttons.
Typeface
A specific named design of a set of printed characters.
Example: Times New Roman.
Widow
A single line of text at the top of a page or column.
cf: Orphan.
Word Wrap
Automatic wrapping of a sentence onto the next line without the need for a carriage return.
Zoom In/Out
Viewing a window at different levels of magnification.

Contents: Word Processing

Skill Check: Word Processing