Lithography is a method of printing. The name is built from Greek pieces meaning “stone” and “to write,” because the first printers drew on a flat limestone with a greasy crayon.

Lithographylithography(石版印刷) is a method of printing是一種印刷方法。 The name is built from Greek pieces meaning "stone" and "to write,"這個名字是用希臘文的字根組成的，意思是「石頭」和「書寫」 because the first printers drew on a flat limestone with a greasy crayon因為最早的印刷師是用油膩的蠟筆在平的石灰岩上畫圖。

They then wet the stone: water stayed on the bare rock, and oily ink stuck only to the drawing. Paper pressed on the stone picked up the picture.

They then wet the stone接著他們把石頭弄濕: water stayed on the bare rock：水會留在沒畫的裸露石面上, and oily ink stuck only to the drawing，油性的墨只會黏在畫過的地方。 Paper pressed on the stone picked up the picture把紙壓在石頭上，就會把圖案印上去。

The stone has mostly given way to a metal plate, but the idea is the same — some parts take ink, some do not. Artists still use it for limited prints.

The stone has mostly given way to a metal plate石頭大多已經被金屬版取代了, but the idea is the same，但原理是一樣的 — some parts take ink, some do not——有些地方會吃墨，有些地方不會。 Artists still use it for limited prints藝術家還是會用它來做限量版畫。

A later industrial form, offset lithography, is how a great deal of ordinary printing (magazines, packaging, some books) has long been done. In a museum, lithography usually means the art method; in a print shop it may mean that wider family of printing.

A later industrial form, offset lithography後來出現的工業版本，offset lithography(平版印刷／柯式印刷), is how a great deal of ordinary printing (magazines, packaging, some books) has long been done，就是長久以來大量一般印刷品（雜誌、包裝、還有一些書）的做法。 In a museum, lithography usually means the art method在博物館裡，lithography通常是指藝術的那種方法; in a print shop it may mean that wider family of printing；在印刷廠裡，可能是指更廣的那整個印刷家族。