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Graphic Design vocabulary · Design Principles

Alignment

Meaning in graphic design, with examples

/əˈlaɪnmənt/nounCore term

In graphic design, alignment means: The way elements line up with each other or with an edge, for example text set flush left, centred or justified, which helps a design look neat and connected.

In Turkish: hizalama, hiza

How it is used

Used in critiques, software and typesetting. You check, fix or change the alignment; text alignment can be left, right, centred or justified. The verb is align, and elements are aligned to a grid or to each other.

Example sentences

  1. The alignment is slightly off: the caption starts two millimetres to the right of the image.

  2. For long paragraphs, left alignment is usually easier to read than centred text.

Common collocations

  • left alignment
  • check the alignment
  • text alignment
  • alignment is off
  • gridA hidden structure of columns, rows and margins that designers use to place elements consistently, so that pages in a book, website or campaign feel organised and related.
  • proximityThe design principle that related items should be placed close together and unrelated items further apart, so readers understand at a glance what belongs together.
  • balanceThe way the visual weight of elements is spread across a design so that it feels stable. Balance can be symmetrical, with mirror-like halves, or asymmetrical.
  • marginThe empty space between the content and the edges of a page or screen. It frames the content and keeps important text away from where the paper is cut or bound.

This word in other fields

The same English word can have a different meaning in another field:

More terms: Design Principles

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