Video editing glossary
The words editors use, in plain language.
- A-roll
- The main footage of a video: usually you talking to the camera. Everything else is cut around it.
- Aspect ratio
- The shape of the frame. 9:16 is tall, for TikTok, Reels and Shorts; 16:9 is wide, for YouTube. Export in 9:16 or 16:9 →
- B-roll
- Extra footage shown over your voice, like the product, the place or what you're describing, to break up a talking shot.
- Burned-in captions
- Captions drawn into the video itself, so they show on every app and player, whether or not the viewer turns subtitles on. Auto captions →
- Captions
- The words you say, shown on screen in time with your voice. Many people watch short videos with the sound off. Caption styles →
- CTA (call to action)
- The line that tells the viewer what to do next: follow, comment, click the link. Usually at the end.
- Dead air
- Silence in a video where nothing is said or shown. It's where viewers swipe away. Remove pauses →
- Filler words
- Sounds like um, uh and erm that fill a pause while you think. Cutting them makes a take tighter. Remove ums and pauses →
- Hook
- The first one or two seconds of a short video: the line or picture that makes someone stop scrolling. How to write a hook →
- J-cut
- A cut where the sound of the next shot starts before its picture, so the change feels smooth.
- Jump cut
- A cut between two moments of the same shot, so the speaker seems to jump forward. The usual way pauses and retakes are removed.
- L-cut
- A cut where the sound of one shot carries on over the picture of the next.
- Loop
- A short video whose end leads back into its start, so it plays again without a seam.
- Punch-in (zoom)
- A quick zoom on the speaker to stress a point, often used to hide a jump cut.
- Retake
- Saying a line again because the first try wasn't right. The editor keeps the best one. Cut retakes automatically →
- Retention
- How much of a video people watch before leaving. Tight edits, a clear hook and no dead air help it.
- Rough cut
- The first assembly of a video: the right takes in order, before captions, music and polish.
- Safe zone
- The part of a vertical frame that the app's buttons and text don't cover. Captions belong inside it.
- Take
- One recorded attempt at a line or a whole video.
- Talking head
- A video of one person speaking to the camera, framed from the chest up. Talking-head video editor →
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