Electrotyped

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. The creation of a metal printing plate from a mold involves a technique for reproducing text or images consistently and accurately across numerous copies
2. This process allows for the replication of illustrations or written works by forming a durable metal plate from a cast, enabling high-volume printing
3. Formed a metal replica of a surface by depositing metal through an electrical process for use in printing

Etymology: The past tense of "electrotype" is built from two familiar parts: "electro-", which comes from Greek "ēlektron", meaning amber, and "type", a printing term. The Greek word gave its name to electricity because amber, rubbed with cloth, attracts light objects, and the sense of electric current later passed into the prefix. Its route into English ran through Latin "electrum", a word for a metal alloy of gold and silver, and through French, which contributed the "électro-" form. The "type" half is the older printing sense: a piece of metal bearing a raised letter or image used to print from. Electrotyping added the electrical element. A wax or lead mould of a printed page was coated with a thin layer of copper deposited by electrolysis, producing a hollow copper shell that could be backed with metal and used as a durable printing plate. The compound was therefore named for the electrical process that made a type-like plate, and the verb's past forms describe a page that has been copied this way.