Collecting
Stamp Collecting Terms for Beginners
Stamp collecting has its own vocabulary, but a newcomer needs only a handful of terms to get started. The essentials cover the hobby itself (philately), the state of a stamp (mint, used, gum), its physical features (perforation, watermark, margin), and how it is identified and valued (catalogue, SG number, face value). The terms below are the ones you will meet first, explained simply.
At a glance
Stamp collecting has its own vocabulary, but a newcomer needs only a handful of terms to get started. The terms below are the ones you will meet first, explained simply and grouped by what they describe.
For the complete picture, our full stamp collecting glossary explains around two hundred terms in depth.
The hobby and the basics
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| Philately | The collecting and study of stamps and postal history. A collector is a philatelist. |
| Definitive | An everyday stamp, issued over a long period in a range of values, for ordinary postage. |
| Commemorative | A special stamp marking an event, anniversary or theme, usually issued for a limited time. |
| Face value | The postage value printed on a stamp, such as one penny. |
The state of a stamp
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| Mint | A stamp that has never been used for postage, with a clean face and usually its original gum. See our guide to mint or used. |
| Used | A stamp that has been through the post and carries a cancellation (a postmark). |
| Gum | The adhesive on the back of an unused stamp. Its condition matters greatly to a mint stamp's value. |
| MNH (mint never hinged) | A mint stamp with perfect, undisturbed gum, never mounted on a hinge. See our guide to MNH. |
| Cancellation (postmark) | The mark struck across a stamp to show it has been used. |
The physical features
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| Perforation | The rows of small holes between stamps that let them be torn apart. Measured by a perforation gauge. See our guide to perforations. |
| Watermark | A faint design in the paper, made during manufacture, seen by holding the stamp to the light. See our guide to watermarks. |
| Margin | The plain border around a stamp's design. On imperforate stamps, the size of the margins greatly affects value. |
| Imperforate | A stamp issued without perforations, separated by cutting. The earliest stamps were imperforate. |
| Overprint | Extra printing added to a stamp after it was made, for example to change its value or country. |
Identifying and valuing
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| Catalogue | A reference book, such as Stanley Gibbons, that lists stamps, gives each a number, and provides a guide value. |
| SG number | A stamp's reference number in the Stanley Gibbons catalogue, used to identify it precisely. See our guide to SG numbers. |
| Catalogue value | The guide price a catalogue gives a stamp, usually higher than the price it actually sells for. See catalogue value versus market value. |
| First day cover (FDC) | An envelope bearing a stamp cancelled on its first day of issue. |
| Cover | A whole envelope or piece of postal history, which can be collected in its own right. |
Where to learn more
The full vocabulary
These are the terms you will meet first, and they are enough to begin reading, sorting and buying with confidence. As your interest grows, you will come across many more, from "se-tenant" to "tete-beche", all explained in our complete stamp collecting glossary, which covers around two hundred terms in full. And our guide to stamp collecting for beginners brings these ideas together for the newcomer.
Frequently asked questions
A mint stamp has never been used for postage. It has a clean face and usually its original gum, the condition of which matters greatly to its value.
A definitive is an everyday stamp issued over a long period for ordinary postage, while a commemorative is a special stamp marking an event or theme, usually issued for a limited time.
A stamp's reference number in the Stanley Gibbons catalogue, used to identify it precisely. It also leads you to the stamp's catalogue value.
In our complete stamp collecting glossary, which explains around two hundred terms. This beginner page covers only the essentials you meet first.
Founder and stamp dealerLast updated June 2026