Glossary of Terms

Eyewear confusion leaving you seeing question marks? These definitions should help wipe away the smudge marks from your eyewear knowledge. And remember, your eyecare professional is always there to guide you and answer any questions you may have!! An educated buyer is the best consumer. Don't be afraid to ask.

Fashion Options

Aviator-style frames: Eyewear like those that pilots used to wear; they usually have a metal frame and large, tinted lenses. Modifications of the traditional aviator-style frame are very popular.

Cat-eye frame: A retro style frame with upswept almond shape and high temple placement that are sometimes accented with jewels or crystals.

Drop Temple: The temples are attached at the bottom of the lens area rather then at the top and can have a slight upsweep or curve.

Flash-Mirror Lenses: Highly reflective cosmetic coating to a lens. The frame has a hint of mirror, adds style, shimmer and color to the lens.

Floating Lenses: The lens is mounted in a way that creates the illusion that the lens is floating in the frame.

Gradients: When a lens has a gradual fade from a dark to light color, usually fading from the top down.

Laminates: A plastic frame treatment that layers two or more colors on top of one another.

Over-Prescription Sunwear: Sunwear that is designed to be worn over existing glasses, and come in a wide variety of styles, colors and available lens technologies.

Pillowed Rectangle: A rectangular frame shape that is slightly puffed or curved on the top and bottom.

Readers: Glasses which are mainly used for help with close work. Entire lens area magnifies for ease in seeing at near point. Since readers can be purchased in a variety of professional and retail settings, some consumers use this as a “band-aid” for regular eye exams. Don’t forget to see your eyecare professional for a true assessment of your visual health and sight needs!

Rimless: Frames in which the lens appears to not have a frame, held together by invisible nylon cord, notches or mounting screws.

Semi Rimless: Frames with a traditional frame on the top half of the lens, where the bottom appears to have no frame (but is invisible nylon.) There are also semi-rimless with the rim on the bottom and not the top.

Tortoise: A frame that is a mottled brown or gold color, which resembles a turtle shell.

Wrap-around(wrap): Type of eyeglass frame that curves around the head, from the front to the side. Wrap-around sunglasses tend to offer extra sun protection because the lenses usually hug close to the face and protect the delicate tissue around the eye as well.

Shields: Large glasses, generally sunwear, that were originally designed to fit over prescription eyewear, which are now a fashion staple. Lens is cut so it is one piece, covering more space on the face.

Task Specific Eyewear: Eyewear that is designed to perform well for a particular function or usage whether for work, sports, driving, fashion needs, etc.

Titanium: A type of metal alloy that is very strong, lightweight and often hypoallergenic.

Zyl: Plastic frame material.

Anatomy of a Pair of Eyeglasses

Adjustable Nosepads: Located in the bridge area, they help to distribute the weight for a comfortable fit. Some pads are made of silicone type material that also prevents slippage.

Bridge: The part of eyeglasses that extends across the nose.

Brow Bar: On sunwear or sports eyewear a plastic or foam piece that keeps the frame away from the brow to avoid fogginess. It is located at the lop of the frame, near the wearer’s brow line.

Keyhole Bridge: A type of bridge that fits only on the sides, and does not touch the top. Resembles a keyhole.

Saddle Bridge: A type of bridge that sits uniformly over the nasal crest.

Spring Hinges: Type of hinge on eyeglass frames that flexes, making the frames more durable. Spring hinges also help keep your glasses in proper alignment and reduce the need for frequent adjustments.

Temple: The “arm” or “wing” of a pair of glasses, running from behind the ear to the lens area.

Three Piece Mount: A rimless frame that has mounting pieces that attach to each lens and a bridge piece that attaches the lenses together making the look virtually “frameless.”

Uni-fit Bridge: A plastic or silicone insert on a metal frame that replaces the adjustable pad arms and creates a one-piece bridge construction similar to that on a plastic. Some are very flexible and have the ability to be customized to fit the contours of the nose.

Lens Options

AR Coating: A lens treatment that is designed to block reflected light. This will give a reduction in glare; reduce reflections and halos that you can see around light. Especially good for night driving. Also applied to the backside of quality sunglasses to reduce reflections that enter from the sides and back.

Flash Mirror: A highly reflective coating for lenses, used for both cosmetic and performance reasons. Flash mirrors reflect light and keep eyes cool and comfortable. Great for contact lens wearers!

Glass Lenses: Tempered for impact resistance, but they are not un- breakable or shatterproof. The heaviest lens material, and is more scratch resistant the conventional plastic.

Gradient Lenses: When a lens has a gradual fade from a dark to light color, usually fading from the top down. Use of multiple bands of colors provides a maximum fashion forward look and can coordinate with laminated frame colorizations.

Hard Resin/Conventional Plastic Lenses: More impact resistant than glass, and approximately half the weight of glass lenses.

High-Index Lenses: A lens with a high level of refraction, meaning that light travels faster through the lens to reach the eye then in a traditional glass or plastic. Visual correction occurs with less lens material, so these lenses tend to be thinner and lighter. Lenses come in a variety of indexes and the higher the index the thinner the lens appears

Multivision/focal Lenses: Lenses that provide vision with more then one field of view.

Photochromic: A lens that is able to change lens color or darkness/density depending on the degree of exposure to light.

Plano: Refers to all eyewear that doesn't have prescription or corrective lenses.

Polarized: Lenses that block light reflected from horizontal surfaces such as water, to reduce glare. Available in traditional shades of gray and brown and can also be seen in fashion colors such as orange, blue, purple and yellow.

Polycarbonate: A plastic that is very impact-resistant, and is very durable. Recommended for all children under 18 due to their active lifestyle. Most beneficial at work and recreational activities where safety is a major concern

Progressive: Multifocal lenses whose corrective powers change progressively throughout the lens. Each area of correction is blended invisibly to the next, so the lenses do not have the lines typically associated with bifocals or trifocals. Affords most “natural” visual for all distances: near, far, and everything in between

Sun Clip: Tinted glasses that clip, either magnetically or by hooks, attaches to your regular glasses. Provides easy to use sun protection and lenses are available in a variety of materials and can often be customized to meet your specific performance and protection needs

Scratch Resistant: A lens coating that increases the durability of the lens and reduces the amount of scratches from everyday normal usage

Single Vision Lenses: Provide correction with only one focal point. Can be used to correct either hyperopia or myopia.

Trifocal Lens: Multifocals with lines that provide three fields of vision (Near vision, Distance Vision and Intermediate Vision)

UV Protection: A lens coating that protects your eyes from harmful UV rays.

Variable Tint Lenses: Tint adjusts to the amount of UV light, could go darker to lighter, or change color (pink to blue).