3D glossary
Explained simply
The words you meet in 3D, in plain English: modeling, texturing, rendering, animation, Blender, file formats and AI 3D.
Start here: 3D terms for beginners
New to 3D? Read these ten in order. Together they cover how a model is built, how it gets its look, how it moves and how it becomes an image.
- 01MeshThe surface of a 3D model, made of points, lines and flat faces
- 02PolygonA flat shape with straight sides; meshes are built from many of them
- 03TopologyHow the faces and edges of a mesh are laid out and flow across it
- 04UV mappingFlattening a 3D surface into 2D so a texture knows where to go
- 05TextureAn image wrapped onto a 3D surface to give it color and detail
- 06MaterialThe settings that decide what a 3D surface is made of
- 07PBR (physically based rendering)Materials and light that follow real-world physics
- 08RiggingGiving a model a skeleton and controls so it can be posed
- 09KeyframeA saved pose or value at a point in time; software fills the gaps
- 10RenderingTurning a 3D scene into finished images or video frames
All 3D terms, A to Z
248 terms
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- Rigging & animation12 principles of animationTwelve classic guidelines that make motion feel alive and believable
- Rigging & animation3D animationMoving 3D models and cameras over time to tell a story
- Software basics3D cursorBlender’s movable marker that sets where new objects appear
- File formats3D file formatsThe ways a 3D model or scene is saved, and how to pick the right one
- Modeling3D modelingBuilding the shape of an object in 3D software, point by point or brush by brush
- AI & 3D generation3D motionAI camera movement that adds depth to a still image
- 3D printing & CAD3D print supportsTemporary scaffolding that holds up overhangs while a model prints
- 3D printing & CAD3D printingBuilding a real object layer by layer from a 3D model
- Scanning & XR3D product visualizationShowing products as 3D renders, animations or interactive viewers
- Scanning & XR3D scanningMeasuring a real object or place to make an accurate 3D copy
- Software basics3D softwarePrograms for building, editing and rendering 3D models and scenes
- AI & 3D generation3D world generationAI that creates explorable 3D scenes or worlds from a prompt or image
A
- Lighting & renderingActive cameraThe one camera a scene renders through, out of all the cameras in it
- Software basicsActive objectThe one selected object that tools treat as the main target, usually the last clicked
- Software basicsAdd-onAn optional extra you install to give a 3D app new tools
- AI & 3D generationAI renderingUsing AI image or video models to turn a simple 3D render into a finished look
- AI & 3D generationAI texturingUsing AI to create the colors and materials on a 3D model from a prompt
- Texturing & materialsAlbedo mapA texture holding a surface’s pure color, with no lighting painted in
- Texturing & materialsAmbient occlusionThe soft darkening in corners and cracks where less light reaches
- Rigging & animationAnimation curveA line on a graph showing how a value changes over time
- Rigging & animationAnimation retargetingCopying motion from one skeleton onto a different character
- Lighting & renderingAnti-aliasingSmoothing the jagged stair-step edges in rendered images
- Software basicsApply transformsMaking an object’s current size and rotation its clean starting point
- ModelingArray modifierA modifier that repeats an object in rows, grids or circles with adjustable spacing
- Scanning & XRAugmented realityPlacing digital 3D content over a live view of the real world
- Rigging & animationAuto-riggingSoftware that fits a skeleton and skin weights to a character for you
B
- Software basicsBackface cullingSkipping the back side of faces to draw a scene faster
- Texturing & materialsBakingSaving slow detail or lighting into a texture so it never has to be recalculated
- ModelingBevelCutting a sharp corner into a small slope or curve so it catches light
- ModelingBezier curveA smooth curve shaped by a few anchor points and the handles that pull on them
- Rigging & animationBlend shapeA saved, reshaped copy of a mesh you can fade in, like a smile
- Software basicsBlockingPlacing actors and camera to plan a shot
- Rigging & animationBoneOne rigid piece of a 3D skeleton that moves the mesh around it
- ModelingBooleanCombining or cutting two shapes with union, difference or intersect
- ModelingBounding boxThe smallest box that fully contains a 3D object
- ModelingBox modelingShaping a model by starting from a cube and refining it step by step
- Texturing & materialsBSDF (shader)The rule a renderer uses for how light bounces off or passes through a surface
- Texturing & materialsBump mapA grayscale texture that fakes fine bumps through shading alone
C
- 3D printing & CADCAD (computer-aided design)Software for modeling objects with exact measurements, ready to manufacture
- Scanning & XRCamera solveWorking out a real camera’s path from tracked footage
- Lighting & renderingCausticsBright patterns of light focused by glass, water or polished metal
- Lighting & renderingCel shadingA style that makes 3D look hand-drawn, with flat color bands and outlines
- Scanning & XRCGI (computer-generated imagery)Any image or video made with computer graphics, from film effects to product shots
- Texturing & materialsChannel packingStoring several grayscale maps in the color channels of one image
- ModelingCharacter modelA 3D person or creature built to be rigged and animated
- AI & 3D generationClay renderA plain grey render that shows only form, light and composition
- Software basicsClipping planesThe near and far limits of what a camera or viewport can see
- Rigging & animationCloth simulationMaking a mesh fold, drape and flap like real fabric
- Software basicsCollectionsFolders in Blender’s outliner that group objects so you can hide or reuse them together
- Rigging & animationConstraintA rule that makes one object follow, copy or limit another
- Rigging & animationControl rigThe handles animators grab to pose a character without touching bones
- Software basicsCoordinate spaceThe set of axes that positions and directions are measured against
D
- Texturing & materialsDecalAn image placed on top of a surface like a sticker, for one-off details
- ModelingDecimationAutomatically cutting a mesh’s face count while keeping its shape
- Lighting & renderingDenoisingCleaning the grainy speckle out of a fast render
- AI & 3D generationDepth mapA grayscale image showing how far each pixel is from the camera
- Lighting & renderingDepth of fieldHow much of the scene, front to back, looks sharp
- Texturing & materialsDiffuse mapA color texture from older workflows that often includes painted shading
- Scanning & XRDigital twinA 3D copy of a real thing, kept in step with it through live data
- Texturing & materialsDisplacement mapA texture that really moves the surface, changing its shape and outline
- Rigging & animationDope sheetAn animation editor that shows every keyframe as a mark on a timeline grid
- Software basicsDuplicate verticesStacked points that look joined but secretly split a mesh apart
E
- Rigging & animationEasingSpeeding up or slowing down motion so it feels natural
- ModelingEdgeA straight line joining two vertices; the borders of every face
- ModelingEdge loopA chain of connected edges that runs around a model, end to end
- ModelingEdge ringA set of parallel edges side by side, like the rungs of a ladder
- Software basicsEdit mode vs object modeChanging a model’s shape versus handling the model as a whole
- Texturing & materialsEmission mapA texture that makes parts of a surface glow with their own light
- ModelingEnvironment designDesigning the 3D worlds and sets a story happens in
- ModelingExtrusionPulling a face, edge or point outward to grow new geometry from it
F
- ModelingFaceThe flat, filled surface between edges; the part you actually see and texture
- 3D printing & CADFDM printingThe common home method that builds parts from melted plastic filament
- Lighting & renderingField of viewHow wide a camera sees, set by its lens
- Lighting & renderingFirefliesBright speckled pixels that scatter across a path-traced render
- Software basicsFlipped normalsFaces pointing inward, which make a model look dark, see-through or broken
- Rigging & animationFluid simulationMaking liquids, smoke and fire move realistically in 3D
- Lighting & renderingFocal lengthThe lens setting that controls zoom and perspective
- Rigging & animationForward kinematicsPosing a limb one joint at a time, from the shoulder down
- Rigging & animationFrame rangeThe first and last frame of a scene’s animation, which set what plays and renders
- Lighting & renderingFresnel effectWhy surfaces turn more mirror-like when you view them at a glancing angle
G
- 3D printing & CADG-codeThe line-by-line instructions a 3D printer or CNC machine follows
- File formatsGame art pipelineThe steps from concept sketch to a model that runs in a game
- File formatsGame assetAny model, texture or sound built to run in a game
- File formatsGame engineSoftware that renders 3D scenes in real time and runs interactive apps
- AI & 3D generationGaussian splattingShowing a real scene as millions of soft, colored blobs that render in real time
- ModelingGeometryThe shape data of a 3D model: its points, edges, faces and curves
- Rigging & animationGimbal lockWhen two rotation axes line up and an object loses a direction of spin
- Lighting & renderingGlobal illuminationLight that bounces between surfaces, filling shadows and carrying color
- Rigging & animationGraph editorAn animation editor that draws each animated value as a curve you can reshape
H
- Rigging & animationHair and furThousands of thin strands grown on a mesh, then combed and styled
- ModelingHard-surface modelingModeling rigid, manufactured objects with crisp edges and clean panels
- Lighting & renderingHDR (high dynamic range)Images that hold a much wider range of dark to bright
- Lighting & renderingHDRIA 360-degree image that stores real light levels, used to light 3D scenes
- Texturing & materialsHeight mapA grayscale image where brightness stands for height
- ModelingHigh-polyA dense, detailed model, often sculpted and used as a source for baking
I
- File formatsIGES fileAn older CAD exchange file for surfaces, curves and drawings
- Software basicsImage planeA flat plane in a 3D scene that shows a picture or video, for references and backdrops
- Lighting & renderingImage sequenceAn animation saved as numbered still images, one per frame, instead of one video file
- AI & 3D generationImage to 3DTurning a picture of an object into a 3D model with AI
- Lighting & renderingImage-based lightingLighting a 3D scene with a panoramic image of its surroundings
- Lighting & renderingIndex of refractionThe number that sets how much glass, water and gems bend light
- 3D printing & CADInfillThe hidden pattern a printer builds inside a part instead of solid plastic
- ModelingInsetA tool that makes a smaller copy of faces inside their own outline, with a border
- ModelingInstancingPlacing many copies of one model that all share the same data
- Rigging & animationInterpolationHow software fills in the values between two keyframes
- Rigging & animationInverse kinematicsPosing a limb by moving its end, like dragging a hand into place
K
L
- ModelingLatticeA simple cage that bends and squashes the object inside it
- 3D printing & CADLayer heightHow thick each printed layer is, trading speed against smoothness
- Scanning & XRLidarMeasuring distance with laser pulses to map shapes and spaces in 3D
- Lighting & renderingLight typesPoint, sun, spot and area: the four lamps in Blender and how each casts shadows
- Lighting & renderingLightmapA texture of baked lighting that lets real-time scenes look richly lit
- ModelingLOD (level of detail)Swapping in simpler versions of a model as it moves away from the camera
- ModelingLoop cutA one-click slice that adds a new edge loop all the way around a mesh
- ModelingLow-polyA model with few faces, built for speed or for a simple faceted look
M
- ModelingManifoldA closed, clean mesh with a clear inside and outside, ready to print
- Texturing & materialsMatcapA lit-sphere image that gives a model an instant look with no lights
- Scanning & XRMatchmovingMatching a 3D camera to real footage so CG sits in the shot
- Texturing & materialsMaterialThe settings that decide what a 3D surface is made of
- Texturing & materialsMaterial slotsNumbered places on an object where materials plug in, so one object can use several
- ModelingMeshThe surface of a 3D model, made of points, lines and flat faces
- Texturing & materialsMetallic mapA black-and-white texture that marks which parts of a surface are metal
- Texturing & materialsMipmapA smaller, pre-shrunk copy of a texture used for distant surfaces
- ModelingMirror modifierA modifier that copies one half of a model to the other side and keeps them in sync
- Texturing & materialsMissing texturesImage files a material can no longer find, which Blender shows as bright pink
- Scanning & XRMixed realityDigital objects that share space with the real world and react to it
- ModelingModifierA reversible effect stacked on an object, such as mirror, bevel or smooth
- Lighting & renderingMotion blurThe streak a fast-moving object leaves in a frame
- Rigging & animationMotion captureRecording a real performer’s movement to drive a 3D character
- AI & 3D generationMulti-view generationAI that draws one object from several matching angles, as a step toward 3D
N
- ModelingN-gonA face with five or more sides, handy on flat areas and risky elsewhere
- AI & 3D generationNeRF (neural radiance field)An AI model that learns a real scene from photos and shows it from new angles
- Software basicsNode editorA workspace where you wire boxes together to build materials and effects
- Rigging & animationNonlinear animationArranging whole animations as clips you can reorder, loop and blend
- Texturing & materialsNormal mapA texture that fakes small bumps and dents without adding geometry
- ModelingNURBSSmooth surfaces defined by math curves, used for precise product design
O
- File formatsOBJ fileA simple, widely supported 3D file that stores a mesh
- Software basicsObject (3D)One thing in a 3D scene, such as a mesh, light or camera, with its own transform
- Rigging & animationOnion skinningSeeing faded neighbor frames while you animate
- Texturing & materialsOpacity mapA grayscale texture that sets how see-through each part of a surface is
- Software basicsOperator search (F3)Press F3 in Blender, type a command’s name and run it without hunting through menus
- Lighting & renderingOrthographic projectionA view with no perspective, where objects stay the same size at any distance
- Software basicsOutlinerThe panel that lists every object in a scene as a searchable tree
P
- 3D printing & CADParametric modelingBuilding CAD parts from dimensions you can change later
- ModelingParentingLinking objects so a child moves, turns and scales with its parent
- Rigging & animationParticle systemA tool that sprays and steers many small points for sparks, rain and dust
- Lighting & renderingPath tracingRay tracing that follows light through many bounces for photoreal images
- Texturing & materialsPBR (physically based rendering)Materials and light that follow real-world physics
- Lighting & renderingPhong shadingA classic per-pixel lighting method for smooth surfaces and soft highlights
- Scanning & XRPhotogrammetryBuilding a 3D model from many overlapping photos of a real object
- Rigging & animationPhysics simulationLetting the software work out motion from gravity, forces and collisions
- ModelingPivot pointThe point an object rotates and scales around
- File formatsPLY fileA flexible 3D file for scans and point clouds, with color on every point
- Scanning & XRPoint cloudA set of 3D points, often from a scan, that outlines a shape
- ModelingPoleA vertex where three, five or more edges meet instead of the usual four
- ModelingPolycountHow many faces or triangles a model has; the quickest measure of its weight
- ModelingPolygonA flat shape with straight sides; meshes are built from many of them
- Rigging & animationPose modeThe mode for moving and keying a rig’s bones to pose a character
- Software basicsPrevisRough 3D versions of shots, planned before filming or generating
- ModelingPrimitiveA ready-made basic shape, such as a cube, sphere or cylinder, to start from
- ModelingProcedural modelingBuilding models from rules and settings so they can be changed or regenerated
- Texturing & materialsProcedural textureA pattern generated by math rules, with no fixed resolution
- Software basicsProperties editorThe tabbed panel that holds render, scene, object, modifier and material settings
- Software basicsProportional editingMoving a few points so nearby ones follow along, fading with distance
- Software basicsPython scriptingWriting short programs to automate and extend a 3D app
R
- Lighting & renderingRasterizationThe fast way games and viewports draw 3D, by filling in triangles on screen
- Lighting & renderingRay tracingRendering by following rays of light for true reflections and shadows
- Lighting & renderingReal-time renderingDrawing 3D images fast enough to react instantly, as in games and viewports
- ModelingRemeshRebuilding a whole mesh automatically with new, evenly spaced faces
- Lighting & renderingRender engineThe software that turns a 3D scene into finished images
- Lighting & renderingRender farmMany computers rendering an animation together to finish it faster
- Lighting & renderingRender passesSeparate images of a render’s lighting, shadows, depth and masks
- Lighting & renderingRender samplesHow many light paths a renderer averages per pixel: more means less noise
- AI & 3D generationRender to videoTurning a 3D render or camera view into a generated video clip with AI
- Lighting & renderingRenderingTurning a 3D scene into finished images or video frames
- 3D printing & CADResin printingHardening liquid resin with light, layer by layer, for very fine detail
- ModelingRetopologyRebuilding a messy model with a clean, lighter mesh on top
- Rigging & animationRiggingGiving a model a skeleton and controls so it can be posed
- Rigging & animationRigid body simulationPhysics for solid objects that fall, collide and stack without bending
- Texturing & materialsRoughness mapA grayscale texture that sets how sharp or blurry reflections look
S
- Lighting & renderingScreen-space reflectionA real-time trick that builds reflections from what is already on screen
- ModelingSculptingShaping a dense model with brushes, the way you would push and pull clay
- Texturing & materialsSeamless textureAn image whose edges match, so it repeats with no visible join
- Software basicsSelection modesThe three ways to pick parts of a mesh while editing: vertices, edges or faces
- ModelingSet dressingFilling a 3D scene with props and small details so it feels lived in
- Texturing & materialsShaderThe small program that decides the final color of every point on a surface
- Lighting & renderingShadow mappingHow real-time engines draw shadows fast, using a depth image from each light
- Software basicsSidebar (N panel)The strip on the right of Blender’s viewport with exact values, view settings and add-ons
- AI & 3D generationSigned distance fieldA shape stored as the distance from every point in space to its surface
- Rigging & animationSkeletal animationAnimating a model by moving the bones inside it
- Rigging & animationSkeletonThe full set of linked bones that decides how a 3D model can bend
- Rigging & animationSkinningAttaching a mesh to its skeleton so the surface bends with the bones
- 3D printing & CADSlicerThe program that turns a 3D model into layer-by-layer print instructions
- Texturing & materialsSmart UV projectBlender’s automatic unwrap that cuts a model into flat pieces by angle, no seams needed
- Software basicsSmooth shadingMaking faceted models look rounded by blending light across faces
- ModelingSmoothing groupA set of faces that shade as one smooth surface, with hard edges where sets meet
- Software basicsSnappingMaking objects and points jump to exact spots as you move them
- ModelingSolidify modifierA modifier that gives a flat or open surface an even, adjustable thickness
- Texturing & materialsSpecular mapA texture that sets how strongly each spot reflects light as a highlight
- Lighting & renderingSpecular reflectionMirror-like reflection that creates shiny highlights on a surface
- ModelingSplineAny smooth curve that software builds from a handful of control points
- File formatsSTEP fileThe standard CAD exchange file for exact, measurable 3D parts
- File formatsSTL fileThe standard 3D printing file: a model’s surface as a list of triangles
- ModelingSubdivision surfaceSmoothing a model by splitting each face into smaller ones, level by level
- Lighting & renderingSubsurface scatteringLight soaking into skin, wax or marble and glowing out nearby
- ModelingSurface normalThe invisible arrow that says which way a surface faces
T
- ModelingTessellationBreaking a surface into many small flat faces, usually triangles
- Texturing & materialsTexel densityHow many texture pixels cover each unit of a model’s surface
- AI & 3D generationText to 3DMaking a 3D model from a written description
- Texturing & materialsTextureAn image wrapped onto a 3D surface to give it color and detail
- Texturing & materialsTexture atlasOne image that packs the textures of many objects side by side
- Texturing & materialsTexture compressionShrinking textures into formats the graphics card can read directly
- Texturing & materialsTexture mappingWrapping a flat image onto a 3D surface to give it color and detail
- Texturing & materialsTexture paintingBrushing color and detail straight onto a 3D model
- Lighting & renderingTone mappingFitting a render’s huge brightness range onto a screen without losing detail
- ModelingTopologyHow the faces and edges of a mesh are laid out and flow across it
- Software basicsTransformAn object’s location, rotation and scale: where it is, which way it faces, how big
- Software basicsTransform gizmoThe colored on-screen handles for moving, rotating and scaling objects
- ModelingTriangulationSplitting every face of a mesh into triangles, usually before export
- Texturing & materialsTrim sheetA texture of reusable detail strips shared across many models
- Texturing & materialsTriplanar mappingProjecting a texture from three directions so no UVs are needed
- Lighting & renderingTurntable renderA looping animation that spins a 3D model so you see every side
- Rigging & animationTweeningGenerating the frames between two keyframes
U
- Texturing & materialsUDIMSpreading UVs across numbered texture tiles for far more detail
- Software basicsUndo historyThe list of recent steps a 3D app remembers, so you can undo, redo or jump back
- Software basicsUnit scaleHow big one unit in a 3D app is in the real world
- Texturing & materialsUV mappingFlattening a 3D surface into 2D so a texture knows where to go
- Texturing & materialsUV seamAn edge marked as a cut line, telling the unwrap where to split the surface
- Texturing & materialsUV unwrappingCutting a 3D surface along seams and unfolding it flat for texturing
V
- ModelingVertexA single point in 3D space; the corners every mesh is built on
- Lighting & renderingView transformThe curve that turns raw render light into colors a screen can show, like AgX or Filmic
- Software basicsViewportThe live window where you see, move around and edit a 3D scene
- Software basicsViewport renderA quick image or video of exactly what the viewport shows, without a full render
- Software basicsViewport shadingHow the viewport draws your scene: wireframe, solid, material preview or rendered
- Scanning & XRVirtual productionFilming actors in front of real-time 3D backgrounds shown on LED walls
- Scanning & XRVirtual realityA headset experience that puts you inside a fully digital 3D world
- Lighting & renderingVolumetric lightingLight made visible in fog, dust or smoke, creating beams and haze
- ModelingVoxelA tiny cube of 3D space, like a pixel with depth
- File formatsVRMLAn early text format for 3D scenes on the web, saved as .wrl files
W
- Rigging & animationWalk cycleA looping animation of two steps that can repeat forever
- Rigging & animationWeight paintingBrushing on a mesh to set how strongly each bone moves each area
- ModelingWireframeA see-through view that draws only a model’s edges
- Lighting & renderingWorld environmentThe sky and background around a 3D scene, which also lights everything in it
3D in Morphic
Morphic is an AI video and image creation platform that takes a project from brief to finished film in one browser workspace. An agentic Copilot plans and runs the work, generating across frontier image, video and audio models; a shared Canvas is where teams explore and compare options; and Compose, a real multi-track editor, cuts, grades and scores the result and exports up to 4K. Built for studios, agencies, marketing teams and independent creators, Morphic replaces a stack of single-purpose tools with one place to generate, edit and deliver. Two parts of it work in 3D:
- In Morphic3D SceneBlock a shot in 3D before you generate it: sets, posed mannequins, camera moves and lenses, exported as a frame or clip for the video model to follow.
- Free add-onMorphic for BlenderAsk Copilot to change your scene and approve each script, generate images, video and 3D models at the 3D cursor, and send renders to Morphic.
3D glossary FAQ
What are the basic 3D terms beginners should learn first?
Start with mesh, polygon, vertex and topology, which describe a model’s shape. Then learn UV mapping, texture and material for its surface, rigging and keyframes for movement, and rendering for the final image. The “Start here” list on this page goes through them in that order.
What is the difference between 3D modeling and 3D rendering?
3D modeling builds the object: its shape, made of a mesh. 3D rendering turns a finished scene, with its models, materials, lights and camera, into a 2D image or video. Modeling comes first; rendering is the last step.
What is the difference between 3D modeling and 3D animation?
Modeling creates still objects. Animation makes them move over time, usually after the model is rigged with a skeleton. Many artists specialize in one, but beginners often learn both in the same app.
Which 3D file format should I use?
Use GLB or glTF for the web, AR and real-time apps, because one file carries the mesh, materials and textures. Use OBJ for a simple still model, FBX to move rigged and animated models between apps and game engines, and STL or 3MF for 3D printing.
Is Blender good for beginners?
Yes. Blender is free and open source, and it covers modeling, sculpting, texturing, rigging, animation and rendering in one app, with a huge library of free tutorials. The interface takes some getting used to, so learn a few core shortcuts first.
Can AI make 3D models?
Yes. Text-to-3D tools build a model from a written prompt and image-to-3D tools from a picture, usually as a textured GLB file. The results suit concepts, props and backgrounds; animated hero assets usually still need retopology and rigging.