A detailed sample page layout indicating the approximate position and style of the various page elements—text, line art, photos, etc.—used as a guide for the actual page makeup. A dummy can describe such a sample page at any level of completeness; it can refer to a simple thumbnail sketch drawn with a pencil, to a full-sized rough which indicates more detail, to a comprehensive which is highly detailed.
The term dummy also refers to a printed signature folded to check the proper page imposition. (See also Imposition Layout, Folding Dummy, and Binding Dummy.)