Jpeg

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A common digital image file format that uses lossy compression to reduce file size for photographs and complex images ; a method of encoding picture data for efficient storage and transmission ; a popular standard for storing and sharing photographic images in various electronic devices
2. A widely used image format characterized by compressing photo data to balance quality and file size ; a digital picture file type optimized for displaying realistic images with adjustable compression ; a format adopted for photographic images allowing easier online and offline use through compression
3. An image encoding standard that applies lossy compression techniques for photographic content ; a file type designed to store and transmit digital photographs with manageable file size ; a format common in digital cameras and web graphics, supporting efficient storage and sharing of photos

Etymology: The word is an initialism, but its last letters carry the real story: "JPEG" stands for Joint Photographic Experts Group, the name of the committee that created the standard for compressing still images. The committee's name was a plain description of its members' task, and the standard took the committee's initials as its name. Over time, the all-capitals form was joined by a lowercase version, so "jpeg" is simply the same name written in a different letter case. The word therefore names a file format rather than a thing with an older history of its own. Its meaning follows from the committee: a "jpeg" is an image file produced under that standard, which discards some visual detail to make the file smaller. Nothing in the word's origin points to a particular person or event beyond the group that gave the format its name.

Synonyms: jpg, image file, photo file