Additive Manufacturing Glossary: 40 Essential Terms

The most frequently encountered terms for those new to the world of 3D printing:

• AM: Additive Manufacturing
• FDM/FFF: Fused Deposition Modeling / Fused Filament Fabrication technology
• SLA/MSLA: Resin-based light-curing technologies
• G-code: The motion command script read by the printer
• Slicer: Software that divides a model into layers
• Hotend: The heating assembly that melts the filament
• Heatbreak / Heatsink: The throat and cooler that prevent heat from creeping upward
• Retraction: The pullback that prevents stringing
• Brim / Raft / Skirt: Bed adhesion aids
• Infill: Internal fill percentage and pattern
• Perimeter/Shell: The outer walls of the part
• Seam: The layer start mark (seam line)
• Bridging: Printing across a gap without support
• Overhang: Overhanging or angled regions
• Warping: Edge lifting caused by cooling shrinkage
• Stringing: Fine filament threads left between features
• Z-offset: Nozzle-to-bed distance adjustment
• E-steps: Extruder step calibration
• PID: Temperature control calibration
• Enclosure: Closed printing chamber
• Purge: Cleaning during color or material transitions
• Resolution: XY precision and layer resolution

For any other terms you are wondering about, feel free to ask us — the Knowledge Center is continuously updated.