OpenType Guide · OpenType Panel

Standard Ligatures

liga

Some pairs of letters crash when set side by side, like the hook of an f and the dot of an i. A ligature is a single glyph drawn to replace that pair so it reads cleanly. Standard ligatures are the ones meant for everyday text, and they are on by default.

See it in Letrismo

Standard Ligatures liga
LETRISMO TATTOO, fluffy waffles

Flip the switch to see what changes.

Where to find it

  1. Character panel
  2. Panel menu ☰
  3. Ligatures

On by default. A check mark next to Ligatures means it is active.

How to use it

  1. Select the text, or a whole text frame to set it for all of it.
  2. Make sure Standard Ligatures is switched on.
  3. Look at pairs like fi, fl and ff: they now join into one shape.

Good to know

  • Letter spacing breaks ligatures apart in some fonts. If you track text out widely, check the result.
  • The text still spells correctly underneath, so search, spell check and copying are not affected.

Our fonts with Standard Ligatures