What do reading app terms mean?
Reading apps use a lot of shop talk: credits, holds, borrow limits, DRM, Read & Listen, page-locked recaps. This glossary explains 33 of those terms in a sentence or two each, with a link to the page where the term matters most. Definitions reflect how the apps describe themselves as of 30 October 2026.
By the Best Reading Apps editors · Published 30 October 2026 · Checked 30 October 2026 · Desk research
A
- Accessibility Reader
- An iPhone feature that shows text in a full-screen view with your own fonts, layout and background colors, and can read it aloud.
See also: Apps that read books to you
- Ask this Book
- A Kindle feature that answers questions about a book's plot, characters and themes without spoilers, on the Kindle iOS app in the US.
See also: Get back into a book
- Audiobook credit
- A token from an audiobook membership that you exchange for one audiobook of your choice. Audible Premium credits expire 12 months after they are issued; Libro.fm credits never expire.
See also: Libro.fm vs Audible
B
- Bookmark Credit
- Magic Bookmark's unit of payment. One credit covers one whole book, your first is free, and credits never expire.
See also: Reading app price index
- Buddy read
- Two or more people reading the same book at the same time and talking about it as they go. The StoryGraph locks buddy-read comments until each reader reaches that point.
See also: Book club apps
C
- Cast list
- A who's who of a book's characters. In Magic Bookmark, the cast list is built only from what you have read, so new characters appear once you meet them.
See also: Get back into a book
- Chapter room
- A discussion space for one chapter of a book. Fable organizes club discussion into spoiler-free chapter rooms.
See also: Book club apps
- Companion audiobook
- An audiobook paired with an ebook so you can switch between reading and listening. Amazon says thousands of Kindle+ ebooks include one.
See also: Read and listen at once
D
- Data linked to you
- A section of an App Store privacy label listing data the developer says may be collected and tied to your identity. Labels are written by developers and not verified by Apple.
See also: How to choose a reading app
- Data used to track you
- The App Store privacy label section listing data that may be used to track you across other companies' apps and websites.
See also: How to choose a reading app
- DNF
- Did not finish: a book you stopped reading on purpose. Goodreads added a Did Not Finish shelf in March 2026.
See also: Reading tracker apps
- DRM-free
- An ebook or audiobook file without digital rights management, so it is not locked to one company's app. Libro.fm sells DRM-free audiobooks.
See also: Libro.fm vs Audible
E
- E-reader
- A dedicated reading device with a paper-like screen, such as a Kindle or a Kobo eReader. Your reading app choice often follows your e-reader.
See also: Apple Books vs Kindle
- Ebook
- A digital book read on a phone, tablet, computer or e-reader. Ebook stores tie your purchases to their own apps.
See also: Best ebook reading app
H
- Hold
- Your place in line for a library title when every copy is checked out. Libby gives you 72 hours to borrow a hold once it is ready.
See also: Hoopla vs Libby
I
- Immersion Reading
- Amazon's read-along mode: the Kindle text highlights as the Audible narrator reads. You need both the ebook and the audiobook.
See also: Read and listen at once
- Included catalog
- Titles a membership lets you listen to or read at no extra cost while you subscribe, such as Audible Premium's 150,000+ included audiobooks and podcasts.
See also: Best audiobook app
K
- Kindle+
- Amazon's reading subscription, renamed from Kindle Unlimited in October 2026: $11.99 a month plus tax in the US, borrow up to 20 titles at a time.
See also: Everand vs Kindle+
- Kobo Plus
- Rakuten Kobo's subscription for ebooks, audiobooks or both, from $7.99 a month in the US.
See also: What is Kobo Plus?
M
- Monthly borrow limit
- The number of titles your library lets you borrow on Hoopla each month. It resets at the start of each calendar month.
See also: Hoopla vs Libby
N
- Narration speed
- How fast an audiobook plays. Libby offers 0.6x to 3.0x; most audiobook apps have a similar control.
See also: Apps that read books to you
P
- Page-locked recap
- A summary of a book that stops at the exact page you have reached, so it cannot spoil what comes next. Magic Bookmark and Kindle's Story So Far both work this way, in different places.
See also: Get back into a book
R
- Read & Listen
- Audible and Kindle's feature for switching between an ebook and its audiobook without losing your place. It was formerly called Whispersync for Voice.
See also: Whispersync is now Read & Listen
- Read Aloud
- Kobo's text-to-speech feature for hands-free reading, available on select ebooks only.
See also: Apps that read books to you
- Read-along
- A book you read and hear at the same time, usually for children. Libby offers interactive read-alongs.
See also: Reading apps for kids
- Reading challenge
- A goal for how many books you will read in a year, as in Goodreads' Reading Challenge.
See also: Reading tracker apps
- Reading goal
- A daily or yearly target for reading time, pages or books. Apple Books sets daily goals with streaks; Bookly sets monthly or yearly goals in hours, pages or books.
See also: Reading apps for adults
- Reading streak
- The number of days in a row you have read. Apple Books, Bookly, Fable and YOMU all track streaks.
See also: Reading apps for adults
S
- Sample
- A free opening section of an ebook you can read before buying. The Kindle app offers a free sample of any book.
See also: Best free reading apps
- Speak Screen
- An iPhone feature that reads all the text on the screen aloud. Swipe down with two fingers from the top of the screen to start it.
See also: Apps that read books to you
- Story So Far
- Part of Kindle Recaps: a spoiler-free refresher up to where you stopped reading, for thousands of popular fiction titles on Kindle devices and the Kindle iOS app in the US.
See also: Get back into a book
T
- Text to speech
- A synthetic voice reading written text aloud, as opposed to a human narrator. Speak Screen, Kobo Read Aloud and Speechify all use it.
See also: Apps that read books to you
X
- X-Ray
- A Kindle feature for looking up the characters, places and ideas in a book while you read.
See also: Best ebook reading app
Questions
- What does DRM-free mean for audiobooks?
- The file is not locked to one company's app, so you can play it on any device. Libro.fm sells DRM-free audiobooks.
- What is the difference between Immersion Reading and Read & Listen?
- Immersion Reading highlights the text while the narrator reads. Read & Listen, formerly Whispersync for Voice, keeps your place in sync when you switch between the ebook and the audiobook.
- What is a page-locked recap?
- A recap that stops at the page you have reached, so it cannot spoil later events. Magic Bookmark and Kindle's Story So Far both offer them, for different books and formats.
Sources
- Apple Support, Hear iPhone speak the screen, selected text, and typing feedback, read 30 October 2026.
- Amazon News, How Kindle helps you stay immersed in every book you read (updated 2 July 2026), read 27 October 2026.
- Audible, Membership Plans & Pricing, read 2 November 2026.
- Libro.fm, Audiobook membership, read 2 November 2026.
- Apple App Store (US), Magic Bookmark: Book Recaps, read 3 November 2026.
- Apple App Store (US), StoryGraph: Reading Tracker, read 2 November 2026.
- Apple App Store (US), Fable: Track & Discuss Books, read 2 November 2026.
- Amazon News, Kindle Unlimited is now Kindle+: Everything you need to know (updated 22 October 2026), read 2 November 2026.
- Apple App Store (US), Goodreads: Book Tracker & More, read 2 November 2026.
- Libby Help, Holds, read 30 October 2026.
- Audible Help, Learn about Read & Listen, read 30 October 2026.
- Rakuten Kobo, Kobo Plus eBook & Audiobook Subscription (US), read 2 November 2026.
- Hoopla (The Loop), How to Borrow Content on Hoopla, read 30 October 2026.
- Apple App Store (US), Libby, the library app, read 2 November 2026.
- Apple App Store (US), Kobo Books & Audiobooks, read 2 November 2026.
- Apple App Store (US), Apple Books, read 2 November 2026.
- Apple App Store (US), Bookly: Book Tracker, read 2 November 2026.
- Apple App Store (US), Everand: Audiobooks & Ebooks, read 2 November 2026.
- Apple App Store (US), Amazon Kindle: Reading App, read 2 November 2026.