Design Nomenclature / Type
Tail
- Type
- 2D
This entry has not been translated yet and is shown in English.
A descending stroke, usually decorative or terminal rather than structural — the flourish of Q, the leg of R where it swings out, the descending finish of a single-storey g or a y. Tails are the most extended parts of a face and the first thing to collide with the line below.
In practice
Q's tail is where a designer signs the face. It's also why a tight line-height that looked fine in Latin body copy breaks the moment a Q appears.