Kerning

from The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

Kern \Kern\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Kerned}; p. pr. & vb. n.
   {Kerning}. ] (Type Founding)
   To form with a kern. See 2d {Kern}.
   [1913 Webster]

from The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing (8 July 2008)

kerning

   <text> The process of reducing the spacing between certain
   pairs of letters to improve their appearance.  When a {font}
   is created, each {character} is given a width that includes
   some space around it so that the letters don't run into each
   other when displayed or printed.  This can be thought of as an
   invisible box around each character.  Some pairs of characters
   such as A and V, look better if the boxes overlap slightly,
   bringing the characters closer together (but still not
   touching).

   See also {tracking}, {leading}.

   (1996-06-07)