Type and its meanings...

Typography - the effective delivery of a message though the use of visual language.
Visual Literacy - the ability to construct meaning from visual images and type.
Visual Communication - is based on a level of shared understanding of signs, symbols, gestures and objects.

TYPE IS SPEECH MADE VISIBLE.

Hierachy

An arrangement of items, in which the items are represented as being 'above', 'below' or 'at the same level as' one another. Abstractly, a hierarchy is simply an ordered set. A Hierarchy can link entities either directly or indirectly and either vertically or horizontally. This is akin to two co-workers or colleagues; each reports to a common superior, but they have the same relative amount of authority.

 The type below demonstrates a hierarchy of point size.