TEXT:  ascender 
  The upward vertical stem on some 
  lowercase letters, such as ‘h’ and ‘b’, that 
  extends above the x-height is the 
  ascender.
   aperture
  The aperture is the partially enclosed, 
  somewhat rounded negative space in 
  some characters such as ‘n’, ‘C’, ‘S’, the 
  lower part of ‘e’, or the upper part of a 
  double-storey ‘a’.
   axis
  An imaginary line drawn from top to 
  bottom of a glyph bisecting the upper and 
  lower strokes is the axis.
   baseline
  The imaginary line upon which the letters 
  in a font appear to rest.
   bowl 
  The curved part of the character that 
  encloses the circular or curved parts 
  (counter) of some letters such as ‘d’, ‘b’, ‘o’, 
  ‘D’, and ‘B’ is the bowl.
   bracket
  The bracket is a curved or wedge-like 
  connection between the stem and serif 
  of some fonts. Not all serifs are 
  bracketed serifs.
  type anatomy
  Quick Reference
  — Basic parts 
  of a typeface
  a
  Typeface 
  Anatomy
  Handglovery
  Bracket
  Crossbar
  Stem
  Terminal
  Counter
  Loop/Lobe
  Axis
  Link/Neck
  Bowl
  Eye
  Aperture
  Tail
  Descender
  Serif
  Shoulder
  Ascender
  Ear
  Overshoot
  cap-height
  x-height
  baseline
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   cap height
  The height from the baseline to the top 
  of the uppercase letters (not including 
  diacritics).
   counter
  The enclosed or partially enclosed circular 
  or curved negative space (white space) of 
  some letters such as ‘d’, ‘o’, and ‘s’.
   crossbar
  The (usually) horizontal stroke across the 
  middle of uppercase ‘A’ and ‘H’ is a 
  crossbar.
   descender
  Any part in a lowercase letter that extends 
  below the baseline, found for example in 
  ‘g’, ‘j’, ‘p’, ‘q’, ‘y’, etc. Some types of 
  descenders have specific names.
   ear
  Typically found on the lower case ‘g’, an 
  ear is a decorative flourish usually on the 
  upper right side of the bowl. 
   eye
  Much like a counter, the eye refers 
  specifically to the enclosed space in a 
  lowercase ‘e’.
   link/neck
  The stroke, often curved, that connects 
  the bowl and loop of a double-storey ‘g’.
   loop/lobe
  In a double-storey ‘g’, the loop is the 
  enclosed or partially enclosed counter 
  below the baseline that is connected to 
  the bowl by a link. The enclosed or 
  partially enclosed extenders on cursive 
  ‘p’, ‘b’, ‘l’, and similiar letters are also 
  called loops.
   tail
  The descending, often decorative stroke 
  on the letter ‘Q’, or the descending, often 
  curved diagonal stroke on ‘K’ or ‘R’ is 
  the tail.
   terminal
  The end (straight or curved) of any stroke 
  that doesn’t include a serif.
   x-height 
  The height of the lowercase letters, 
  disregarding ascenders or descenders, 
  typically exemplified by the letter x. The 
  relationship of the x-height to the body 
  defines the perceived type size. A typeface 
  with a large x-height looks much bigger 
  than a typeface with a small x-height at 
  the same size.
  type anatomy
  Quick Reference
  a
  FontShop Education
  Without training the best typefaces can 
  only go so far. That’s why FontShop is 
  more than a shop that sells fonts — we 
  want to help you do great work too. Get 
  more typography tips and tutorials at 
  fontshop.com/education.
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  their respective owners. The contents of this 
  publication may not be repurposed or duplicated 
  without express prior written permission.
  About FontShop
  Founded by Erik Spiekermann and Neville 
  Brody in 1989, FontShop is the original 
  independent retailer of digital type. 
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  including our house brand: FontFont.
  Colophon
  This document is set in ff Meta Serif for 
  titles, and ff Unit for captions and text.
  Further Reading
  • FontShop Fundamentals 2 
  • Erik Spiekermann's Typo Tips
  • Type Glossary
  • Type Anatomy
  Online Resources
  • Fontshop.com
  • FontFeed.com
  • Spiekermann.com
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SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Crafts/Design/Typeface Anatomy.pdf