spacing

A thin line separating groups of content, decorative when the grouping is already clear and semantic when it is the only cue.

A spacing convention where every size and gap is a multiple of eight, so values stay whole numbers at every common screen density.

A set of evenly spaced horizontal lines that every line of text sits on, so type in adjacent columns lines up across the page.

A layout primitive that lays items of differing widths out like words in a paragraph, wrapping to new lines with even gaps in both directions.

A wrapper that caps how wide content can get and adds the side padding that keeps it off the viewport edges.

How much content a system packs into a given area, tuned as a named setting so the same components can run comfortable or compact.

A spacing ramp whose every step interpolates between a minimum and a maximum viewport, so gaps grow smoothly with the screen instead of jumping at breakpoints.

The space between columns or tracks in a grid, distinct from the outer margin that separates the grid from the container edge.

An invisible line that content across a whole screen aligns to, such as the edge line every row starts at and the deeper line where text begins after an icon.

The reserved space between a container's edge and its content, sized by the system so content never touches the edge of the screen.

Nudging an element off its measured position so it looks aligned, correcting for shapes whose bounding box lies about their visual centre.

The grouping principle that elements placed close together read as related, which is why spacing decides perceived structure more reliably than borders do.

A deliberate empty element between regions: the gap between two panes that carries the drag handle when they resize, or the flexible filler that pushes toolbar items apart.

The fixed, named set of spacing values a system allows, so gaps come from a shortlist instead of being invented per screen.

A layout primitive that puts one consistent gap between every child in a vertical run, so spacing lives with the parent instead of each item.

The empty area between and around elements, treated as an active design material rather than as leftover space.

A style that fills the screen on purpose with layered color, pattern, and type, treating abundance rather than restraint as the message.

A style that reduces an interface to one typeface, one accent color, and generous empty space, letting whitespace rather than ornament carry hierarchy.

The invisible line that most letters sit on, and the line every other vertical type metric is measured from.

A CSS length equal to the advance width of the digit zero in the current font, used to set column widths in characters rather than pixels.

A relative unit equal to the current font size, historically the width of the square the letter m was cast on.

Indenting the opening line of a paragraph so the start of each paragraph is visible without a blank line between them.

Type sizes that scale continuously with the viewport between a minimum and a maximum, rather than jumping at breakpoints.

The empty space a browser splits evenly above and below a line of text when line height exceeds the font's own height, which is why text boxes never sit flush.

A paragraph whose first line starts further left than the rest, so the following lines are indented under it.

Text set so both edges of the column are flush, achieved by stretching or squeezing the spaces between words on each line.

The adjustment of space between two particular letters so the pair reads evenly.

The vertical distance from one baseline of type to the next, which sets how a paragraph holds together as a block.

The width of a column of text, judged in characters per line, with roughly 45 to 75 treated as the comfortable range for reading.

A type scale generated by multiplying a base size by a fixed ratio, so every step is proportionally related to the one before it.

An accidental channel of white space running down a paragraph where word spaces on consecutive lines happen to line up.

Cutting the leftover space above and below a line of text so the box hugs the cap height and baseline instead of the font's full ascent and descent.

The uniform space added to or removed from every letter across a run of text.

Spacing every block of text by multiples of one line height so the page keeps an even beat from top to bottom.

The width of the gaps between words, which justification stretches and which, set too wide, opens rivers down a paragraph.

The requirement that a reader can increase line height, letter spacing, word spacing, and paragraph spacing without any content being lost or clipped.