stereotype

stereotype

[′ster·ē·ə‚tīp]

(graphic arts)

A duplicate printing plate made from type and cuts; a paper matrix, or mat, is forced down over the type and cuts to form a mold, into which molten metal is poured, resulting in a new metal printing surface that exactly duplicates the original.

McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific & Technical Terms, 6E, Copyright © 2003 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

stereotype

a set of inaccurate, simplistic generalizations about a group of individuals which enables others to categorize members of this group and treat them routinely according to these expectations. Thus stereotypes of RACIAL, SOCIAL CLASS, and GENDER groups are commonly held and lead to the perception and treatment of individuals according to unjustified preconceptions. See also PREJUDICE.

Collins Dictionary of Sociology, 3rd ed. © HarperCollins Publishers 2000

The following article is from The Great Soviet Encyclopedia (1979). It might be outdated or ideologically biased.

Stereotype

 

a duplicate of a typeform (type and cuts) used in letterpress printing, consisting of a one-piece plate 2–25.1 mm thick. Stereotypes first appeared in the 18th century and are now widely used to print large numbers of copies. Stereotypes are classified according to the method used to produce them as cast (made of type metal), electrotyped, and molded. They can be made entirely of metal (type metal alone or type metal with a layer of a more durable metal deposited on the printing side) or of polymer (plastics or rubber), or they can be made of a combination of a metal and polymer (metal on the printing side and polymer on the reverse side). The shape of rigid stereotypes—those made of metal or of metal and a polymer—depends on the type of printing press used. Flat stereotypes are used with platen and cylinder presses. Curved stereotypes are used with rotary presses.

The Great Soviet Encyclopedia, 3rd Edition (1970-1979). © 2010 The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.