Aspect Ratio
The ratio of an image's width to its height; it directly determines the composition.
Glossary
AI Image Generation Glossary
36 terms explained in plain language: prompt, seed, LoRA, ControlNet, inpainting, CFG scale and the rest. Each entry also says why it matters and where you will meet it.
A
C
C2PA / Content Credentials
A content provenance standard recording how an image was created and edited.
CFG Scale
The setting controlling how closely the model adheres to the prompt.
Character Reference
A reference method that keeps the same character consistent across different scenes.
Checkpoint
The base file containing an image model's trained weights.
Commercial Use
Using a generated image in revenue-generating work; it depends on the tool's licence.
ControlNet
An extension binding generation to a reference image's pose, depth or edges.
Copyright
Legal protection granted to a work's creator; in most countries it does not apply to fully AI-generated works.
D
F
Fine-Tuning
Training an existing model on new data to specialise it for a particular domain.
H
Hallucination
A model generating details that do not exist or make no sense.
I
Img2Img
Generating a new image using an existing one as the starting point.
Inpainting
Regenerating only a selected region of an existing image.
Invisible Watermark
An embedded, invisible marker identifying an image as AI-generated.
L
Latent Space
The internal space where a model represents images in compressed mathematical form.
LoRA
A small add-on training file that teaches a model a new face, product or style.
M
Model Licence
The legal text defining how an AI model may be used.
N
Negative Prompt
A second instruction listing what you do NOT want in the image.
O
Outpainting
Extending an existing image's frame outward by generating its surroundings.
P
Photorealism
A generated image being realistic enough to be indistinguishable from a photograph.
Prompt
The text instruction that tells an AI what you want it to generate.
Prompt Engineering
The practice of writing and refining prompts to reliably obtain a desired result.
Prompt Weighting
A method for increasing or decreasing the influence of specific parts of a prompt.
R
Resolution
An image's size in pixels; screens and print need different thresholds.
S
Sampler
The algorithm determining the mathematical method used to remove noise.
Seamless Tile
A pattern image whose edges match perfectly so it can repeat infinitely.
Seed
The number setting a generation's starting randomness; the same seed with the same prompt reproduces the same image.
Steps
The setting for how many stages the denoising takes; it directly affects quality and time.
Style Reference
A reference method that carries one image's style into new generations.
T
Text-to-Image
Generating an image from a written description; the basic mode of every tool here.
Token
The smallest unit a model breaks a prompt into; it defines the prompt length limit.
Transparent Background
An image with an empty background letting whatever is behind it show through (usually PNG).
U
Upscale
Increasing an image's resolution by using AI to fill in the missing detail.
V
Vector Image
An image defined by mathematical shapes rather than pixels, staying sharp at any size.