Boldfacing

Part of speech: noun, verb

Definitions

1. The act of emphasizing text by making it darker or thicker to stand out more prominently in a body of written content
2. A typographical method used to highlight specific words or phrases by rendering them in a heavier weight than the surrounding text
3. A visual technique in writing where certain letters or words are altered for greater visibility and impact within a document

Etymology: "Boldface" is a plain compound: "bold" joined to "face," where "face" in the typesetting sense refers to the printed surface of a letter, the part of the type that actually makes the mark on paper. A bold face is therefore a type design with heavier strokes, and "boldfacing" is simply the act of setting text in that heavier version. The word is a noun-and-verb pair built the same way, so "to boldface" a phrase means to switch it into that thicker type. Because the parts are transparent, there is no hidden story here: the original sense of "face" as the printed letter-surface explains the whole word, and "boldfacing" just adds the familiar "-ing" ending to the verb.

Synonyms: emboldening, highlighting, emphasizing, accentuating, strengthening

Antonyms: softening, muting, toning down, deemphasizing