JPEG
Etymology
An acronym for the "Joint Photographic Experts Group," the committee that published the standard in 1992. The name is a rare case of a file format bearing the name of the bureaucratic body that designed it rather than what it does.
noun · /JAY-peg/
A widely used image format that shrinks file size by discarding detail the eye is unlikely to notice.
What it names
The everyday example of lossy compression — the trade of perfect fidelity for small size — that shapes almost every photo we share.
Example
Save the logo as a JPEG and the sharp edges blur into telltale smudges; the format was built for photographs, not line art.
Related idea
A JPEG uses lossy compression, permanently throwing away data to save space, so quality degrades each time it is re-saved; a lossless format like PNG preserves every pixel at the cost of a larger file — the choice is fidelity versus size.
See also