Definition

Noun: The fore edge is the outer vertical edge of the pages of a book, opposite the spine. It is the edge you see when a closed book is placed on a shelf with its spine facing outward.

Usage

The term is used specifically in bookbinding, publishing, and book collecting to describe a physical part of a book. * The book's fore edge was decorated with a beautiful painting that is only visible when the pages are fanned. * When shelving books, the fore edge faces the person browsing the shelf.

Advanced Usage

• Fore-edge painting: A decorative painting applied to the fore edge of a book's pages. The painting is often only visible when the pages are fanned or bent in a specific way.
  • The rare volume contained a hidden fore-edge painting of a landscape.

Variants and Related Words

• Fore-edge painting (noun phrase): As described above.
• Spine (noun): The part of a book that is visible when shelved, bearing the title and author's name. It is the edge opposite the fore edge.
• Head (noun): The top edge of a book.
• Tail (noun): The bottom edge of a book.

Synonyms

• Front edge (less common)

Antonyms

• Spine (the back edge of a book where the pages are bound)

Noun

1. the part of a book that faces inward when the book is shelved; the part opposite the spine