imposer

Imposer is a noun derived from the verb impose, with several related meanings in English. In everyday use, an imposer is someone or something that imposes a burden, rule, or demand on others. The term is uncommon outside specific contexts; more typical words are coercer, enforcer, or administrator of obligations. In legal and political discourse, the imposer is the authority or actor that lays down rules or taxes.

In printing and publishing, imposer has a specialized sense. An imposer is a person or machine that performs imposition—arranging pages on a press sheet so that, after folding and trimming, the pages appear in the correct order. Historically, the imposer's craft was essential to efficient press runs. In modern prepress workflows, imposition is often handled by software, though the term imposer may still be used to describe the operator or the imposition module.

Other uses are chiefly descriptive. The imposing of a rule is the act of requiring others to comply; the imposing of a tax is the act of levying a levy by authority. The word is more likely to appear in formal, technical, or literary contexts than in everyday conversation.

Etymology: imposer comes from the Latin imponere, via French imposer, with the sense of placing upon or laying on.