What is additive printing or additive manufacturing?

I have been printing on a 3D printer for half a year now, and today I heard the term "additive manufacturing" for the first time. 😅

It turns out that this is the official name for the technology where an object is created gradually, layer by layer, unlike traditional "subtractive" methods (cutting, milling, casting). In other words, the printer actually builds parts from nothing, adding material rather than cutting it from a block.

The term "additive manufacturing" emerged in the 1980s along with the development of industrial 3D technologies. It emphasizes the main feature of this approach - adding material, not removing it. Now it encompasses not only plastic models.

So when we print, we are actually engaged in additive manufacturing. It sounds a bit more serious than just "3D printing". Although 3D printing seemed complicated in the first month.