Anatomy of Type

1. Cap Height: The distance from the baseline to the top of the capital letter.

2. Arm: A stroke that is attached on one end and free on the other.

3. Ascender: An upward vertical stroke that extends beyond the x-height.

4. Apex: A point at the top of a character where two strokes meet.

5. Bar: The horizontal stroke in characters such as A, H, R, e, and f.

6. X Height: The distance between the baseline and the height of the lowercase letter x.

7. Bowl: A curved stroke which creates an enclosed space within a character.

8. Eye: The closed counter of a lowercase e.

9. Descender: A downward vertical stroke that extends beyond the baseline.

10. Crotch: The part of the letter where two strokes meet.

11. Ear: The small stroke that projects from the top of the lowercase g.

12. Link: The stroke that connects the top and bottom part of a two–story lowercase g.

13. Loop: The lower portion of the lowercase g.

14. Tittle: The dot above the lowercase j and i.

15 & 16: Serif & Slab Serif: The projections extending off the main strokes of the characters of serif typefaces.

17. Shoulder: A curved stroke originating from a stem.

18. Spine:  The main curved stroke of a lowercase or capital letter.

19. Beak: A type of decorative stroke at the end of the arm of a letter, connected to the arm by the terminal.

20. Spur: A small projection off a main stroke found on many capital Gs.

21. Stem: A main stroke that is more or less straight, not part of a bowl.

22. Counter: The white space enclosed by a letterform.

23. Stress: The direction of thickening in a curved stroke.

24. Aperture: The partially enclosed space of a letterform.

25. Stroke: A straight or curved line.

26. Swash: A fancy flourish replacing a terminal or serif.

27. Tail: The descender of a Q or short diagonal stroke of an R.

28. Terminal: A circular form at the end of the arm, leg or brow in letters.

29. Hook: A curved, protruding stroke in a terminal.