In type design, the axis describes the angle of stress or the orientation of the stroke weight within a character, drawing its aesthetic roots from traditional calligraphy. Letterforms that exhibit a tilted or slanted axis mimic the natural angle produced by writing with a broad-nibbed pen, a technique known as translation. On the other hand, letterforms with a perfectly upright, vertical axis mirror the pressure-based strokes of a pointed pen, a technique referred to as expansion.
This structural spine can be identified by observing where the thickest and thinnest parts of a letter’s stroke contrast with one another. Because of this, typefaces that maintain a highly uniform stroke thickness, such as the majority of sans-serif fonts, generally lack a discernable or visible axis.
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