Anatomy of Type
An imaginary line upon which the characters seem to be standing.
What is BASELINE
The part of some lowercase letters, such as the strokes on the letters b, d, or h, that rises above the meanline.
What is ASCENDER
The space entirely or partially enclosed within a letterform, such as the enclosed “bowl” of the letters b, d, and p.
What is COUNTER
An imaginary line that runs along the top of most lowercase letters, such as a, c, e, i, m, n, u, v, w, and x.
What is MEANLINE
The height of the body, or main element, of the lowercase letterform, which falls between the meanline and baseline.
What is X-HEIGHT