What Makes a Typeface Sharp

Sharp typefaces cut their terminals at an angle. The effect shows most on stroke ends and diagonals — an A that finishes as a blade, a crossbar that tapers, a comma clipped to a point. Up close it reads as precision; at poster size it reads as tension.

Where These Get Used

Editorial mastheads, fashion and jewelry wordmarks, music and streetwear branding, and logos that need an edge at large size.

Sharp and Pointy

Sharp describes the terminals, meaning how a stroke ends. Pointy describes the apexes, meaning the tips on A, M, V and W. Typefaces that do both appear in both places — see pointy fonts.