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/ˈlɛd.ɪŋ/

Leading

noun · typography

The vertical distance from one text baseline to the next — the measure of line spacing in a block of type. In classical typesetting it is stated as a length, so 10-point type set with 12-point leading is written "10/12".

What it is

Leading governs how tightly or loosely the lines of a paragraph stack. It is measured baseline to baseline, not from the bottom of one line to the top of the next, so it always includes the height of the type itself. Tight leading packs more lines into a column but slows the eye as it returns to the left margin; open leading admits more air and lengthens the page.

The ratio of leading to type size is what readers actually perceive as comfortable or cramped. Body text on screen typically sits between 1.4 and 1.6 times the font size; a long measure needs more leading than a short one so the eye can find the start of the next line. On a baseline grid every value of leading is a whole-number division of the grid module, which is what keeps facing columns aligned.

Diagram showing leading as the vertical distance between successive text baselinesTypographymeasured tothe baselineleading
Leading is the baseline-to-baseline distance — here the orange bracket between two successive baselines.

Etymology

The word is literal. In hand-set metal type, a compositor placed thin strips of lead between rows of type to open the lines; the strips were called leads, and the practice was leading. The term survived the shift to phototypesetting and then to digital type, where no physical metal exists but the baseline-to-baseline measurement remains. It is pronounced "ledding," after the metal, not "leeding."

Examples in use

A typesetter specifying "10/12 Garamond" sets ten-point type on twelve points of leading — two points of added space. Robert Bringhurst, in The Elements of Typographic Style, recommends leading roughly 1.2 to 1.45 times the type size for continuous text, opening it as the measure widens.

In CSS the same idea appears as line-height; a unitless value of 1.5 means leading one and a half times the font size. Jan Tschichold's The New Typography treated generous leading as a structural element of the modern page, not a cosmetic afterthought.

See also: Baseline · Baseline grid · Measure · Typographic grid · Web design grid systems (pillar)

References

  1. Bringhurst, Robert. The Elements of Typographic Style, 4th ed. Hartley & Marks (2012). ISBN 978-0-88179-212-6.
  2. Tschichold, Jan. The New Typography. Univ. of California Press (1995 trans.). ISBN 0-520-07147-4.

Sarah Chen

Founder of Grid Maker Pro. Classical portrait painter (BA Fine Arts). Writes about composition, drawing methods, and the art-history claims that don't survive measurement.

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