noun

printing

Producing text or images on a surface, or a particular run of copies.

The publisher orders a second printing after the book sells out.

Etymology

The older idea of pressing produced the sense of making impressions in ink. Printing names the process and also a group of copies made in one production run.

More examples

  • Color printing costs more than black-and-white printing.
  • This shop specializes in printing on cotton fabric.
  • Later printings of the cookbook correct several errors.

Forms

printing · printings

print verb — To produce text or images on a surface.

printer noun — A machine that produces printed text or images.

Similar words

reproduction
Copying an original, including through methods other than printing.
impression
Specifically a batch of copies, not the printing process.