| Term | Definition | Source | Source URL |
|---|---|---|---|
| Social token, Social Tokens, socialtokens | Social tokens are an emerging category of digital assets backed by the reputation of an individual, brand or community. | ForeFront | https://2020inreview.forefront.news/ |
| ape | someone who invests heavily into a cryptocurrency or stock, or the act of doing so. This is sometimes a reaction to hype and FOMO, or done without much knowledge of the asset. It should be noted, though, that this is generally a self-assigned term and does not carry a negative connotation. Is it a Planet of the Apes reference? Maybe a reference to the sheer physical strength of apes? The origins are a bit blurry, but one thing is certain — apes together strong. | Unstoppable Domains | https://unstoppabledomains.com/blog/the-web3-glossary |
| floor price | The lowest price for a given collection. E.g “Punk floor is 22 ETH, probably gonna be 50 ETH floor soon” | Zora | https://zine.zora.co/metaverse-glossary |
| rug pull, rugged, rugpull | The term “rug pull” means a theft in which the owners of a cryptocurrency project abandon it after stealing investor/community money. … The term vividly conveys the feeling of investors who were promised a bright future in cryptocurrency riches. | Cyber Talk | https://www.cybertalk.org/2021/09/02/defi-cryptocurrency-rug-pulls/#:~:text=In%20the%20cryptocurrency%20mar,bright%20future%20in%20cryptocurrency%20riches. |
| wagmi, wgmi | We’re All Gonna Make It | discord channels | |
| NGMI | Not Gonna Make It | discord channels and twitter | |
| fam | a word use to describe your peoples. ones that you can trust dearly. someone you consider family | everywhere 🙂 | https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=fam |
| NFT, nfts, Non Fungible Tokens, Non-fungible tokens | Non Fungible Token’ Non-fungible more or less means that it’s unique and can’t be replaced with something else. For example, a bitcoin is fungible — trade one for another bitcoin, and you’ll have exactly the same thing. A one-of-a-kind trading card, however, is non-fungible. If you traded it for a different card, you’d have something completely different. | The Verge | https://www.theverge.com/22310188/nft-explainer-what-is-blockchain-crypto-art-faq |
| GM, gm | Good Morning’ Say it back! | Discord | https://twitter.com/ev__ai |
| GA | Good Afternoon’ Say it back! | Discord | https://twitter.com/ev__ai |
| GN | Good Night’ Say it back! | Discord | https://twitter.com/ev__ai |
| Mint, Minting | Minting an NFT is how your digital art becomes a part of the Ethereum blockchain–a public ledger that is unchangeable and tamper-proof. Similar to the way that metal coins are minted and added into circulation, NFTs are also tokens that get “minted” once they are created. Your digital artwork is represented as an NFT so it can then be purchased and traded in the market and digitally tracked as it is resold or collected again in the future. | Foundation | https://help.foundation.app |
| Airdrop | An airdrop is a distribution of a cryptocurrency token or coin, usually for free, to numerous wallet addresses. Airdrops are primarily implemented as a way of gaining attention and new followers, resulting in a larger user-base and a wider disbursement of coins. | Wiki | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Airdrop_(cryptocurrency)#:~:text=An%20airdrop%20is%20a%20distribution,a%20wider%20disbursement%20of%20coins. |
| Gas | NFT Gas is the term given to the fee that most NFT trading platforms charge. This is incurred to conduct the transaction or execute a contract on their blockchain platform. Gas prices in Ethereum are denoted by unit of Gwei. | Cyber Scrilla | https://cyberscrilla.com/nft-gas-fees-explained/ |
| Burn | Burning’ effectively destroys the token and removes it entirely from the blockchain. When you burn an NFT, the transaction is irreversible. | Foundation | https://help.foundation.app |
| Shill, shilled | To ‘shill’ is the implicit advertising of a cryptocurrency/NFT, you will often see shill threads on Twitter and shill channels in Discord, where people promote their work. | Ledger | https://www.ledger.com/academy/what-is-crypto-shilling#:~:text=%E2%80%94%20Shilling%20is%20the%20implicit%20advertising,demand%20and%20spiking%20the%20price. |
| Seed Phrase | A seed phrase is a series of words generated by your cryptocurrency wallet that give you access to the crypto associated with that wallet. Think of the wallet as being like a password manager for crypto, and the seed phrase as being the master password. | Coinbase | https://www.coinbase.com/learn/crypto-basics/what-is-a-seed-phrase#:~:text=A%20seed%20phrase%20is%20a,crypto%20associated%20with%20that%20wallet.&text=Think%20of%20the%20wallet%20as,as%20being%20the%20master%20password. |
| Whale | Whale’ is used to describe an individual or organisation that holds a large amount of a particular cryptocurrency and therefore could influence a market. | Binance | https://academy.binance.com/en/glossary/whale |
| Floor | Floor’ price is the lowest price for collection items, rather than the average item price. | Opensea | https://support.opensea.io/hc/en-us/articles/4405171313171-What-is-a-floor-price- |
| DYOR | Do Your Own Research’ Encouraging investors/collectors to complete due diligence into a project before investing. | Coin Market Cap | https://coinmarketcap.com/alexandria/glossary/dyor |
| gmi | Gonna make it | Crypto twitter / Zora Glossary | https://zine.zora.co/metaverse-glossary |
| Degen | initially short for “degenerate gambler.” While this still refers to individuals involved with risky bets, degen may also refer more broadly to anyone involved in crypto and financial spaces. Like with “ape,” this is generally a self-assigned term and does not carry a negative connotation. Degens are a proud people who enjoy ridiculous call options on GME, buying the dip before paying their rent, and occasionally aping into shitcoins. “Which one of you degens just bought $50K of XRP at its ATH?!” | Unstoppable Domains | https://unstoppabledomains.com/blog/the-web3-glossary |
| Shitcoin | these terms refer to cryptocurrencies with little to no value, that have no immediate or discernible purpose. (most coins alternative to Bitcoin/eth are considered shitcoins) They’re often used to describe cryptocurrencies that were developed after bitcoins became popular, like Dogecoin or Shiba Inu coin. The catch, however, is that shitcoin currencies are often considered to be bad investments, because their prices are usually based on speculation. Think of them as penny-stock cryptocurrencies. | The Face | https://theface.com/life/shitcoins-cryptocurrency-guide-reddit-binance-smart-chain-investments-money |
| DAO | A DAO is a blockchain-based system that enables people to coordinate and self-govern themselves mediated by a set of self-executing rules deployed on a public blockchain, and whose governance is decentralized | When Ostrom Meets Blockchain: Exploring the Potentials of Blockchain for Commons Governance: David Rozas1 , Antonio Tenorio-Fornés1 , Silvia Díaz-Molina1, and Samer Hassan1,2 | https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/885154481644388372/897867525734416424/Designing_for_Multiple_Centers_of_Power-_A_Taxonomy_of_Multi-level_Governance_in_Online_Social_Platf.pdf |
| ATH, all time high | “All-Time High” (ATH) refers to the highest price (or market cap) that an asset has reached since its listing or inception. As the price used to define the “all-time high” is the last done, it just refers to the highest price a trader paid for an asset, regardless of how much he bought of the asset. | Coin Market Cap | https://coinmarketcap.com/alexandria/glossary/all-time-high |
| Alt Coin, Altcoin | “Altcoin” is used to describe any cryptocurrency that is not Bitcoin — an alternative digital currency. As Bitcoin was the original cryptocurrency, any cryptocurrency that was created after was treated as an “alternative.” | Coin Market Cap | https://coinmarketcap.com/alexandria/glossary/altcoin |
| 51% Attack | A 51% attack refers to a malicious actor (or group acting in concert), controlling over 50% of the total mining power of the blockchain network and disrupting the integrity of the blockchain. | Coin Market Cap | https://coinmarketcap.com/alexandria/glossary/51-attack |
| Metabestie | Your bestie in the metaverse. “Latasha is my metabestie.” | Zora | https://zine.zora.co/metaverse-glossary |
| nfa, Not financial advice | This is a statement that typically follows explicit financial advice from someone. “You should go all-in on $LAMP (NOT FINANCIAL ADVICE)” | Zora | https://zine.zora.co/metaverse-glossary |
| Cooperation Economy | Packy McCormick describes in his article on Cooperation Economy, “liquid super teams, collections of individuals, each with their strengths, powers, and network, who combine forces to achieve goals” | Not Boring | https://www.notboring.co/p/the-cooperation-economy- |
| liquidity, Liquidity Pools | Put simply, creating a Liquidity pool means providing Liquidity for potential buyers. When you’re creating a social Token, this Token has no inherent value. You could have one million of your $NAME Token, it wouldn’t make you a millionaire in our society. **Creating a liquidity pool allows anyone to buy your Token in exchange for other cryptocurrencies with value in USD**. Users putting Liquidity in a pool are named Liquidity Providers, and they make a % of fees on every trade in the pools they participate in and are therefore incentivized to add Liquidity. **Put simply, these Liquidity providers facilitate trading by willing to buy or sell a particular asset at any given time, thereby providing Liquidity and enabling traders to trade without waiting for another buyer or seller to show up**. | Coinvise | https://coinvise.notion.site/What-are-Liquidity-Pools-LPs-bdab50a9a7de4881aea8a9465f877c3d |
| Vesting, Vesting Schedule | vesting a token means locking a certain amount of tokens over a certain period as a commitment to hold the Token. It’s a mechanism that allows the founding team to prove they are highly interested in the project. | Coinvise | https://coinvise.notion.site/What-is-Vesting-Schedule-dccd252171ea44409ebbe06ab5306e40 |
| Address, Crypto Address, Public Key | Used to send and receive transactions on a blockchain network. An address is an alphanumeric character string, which can also be represented as a scannable QR code. In Ethereum, the address begins with 0x. For example: 0x06A85356DCb5b307096726FB86A78c59D38e08ee | Consensys | https://consensys.net/knowledge-base/a-blockchain-glossary-for-beginners |
| air-gapping, airgap | A method for securing computers in which the device does not connect to the internet or any other open networks. | Consensys | https://consensys.net/knowledge-base/a-blockchain-glossary-for-beginners |
| Bitcoin, BTC | The first cryptocurrency based on a Proof of Work (PoW) blockchain. Bitcoin was created in 2009 by Satoshi Nakomoto — a pseudonym for an individual whose real identity is unknown — and the concept of cryptocurrency was outlined in a white paper titled “Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System.” Use “Bitcoin” for the blockchain/network; “bitcoin” for the cryptocurrency. The plural of bitcoin is just bitcoin; the abbreviation is BTC, with a space: I have 250 BTC. | Consensys | https://consensys.net/knowledge-base/a-blockchain-glossary-for-beginners |
| block | A block can be thought of like a link in a chain. It possesses parts or all of the records of the transactions that preceded it. The blockchain network is comprised of millions of blocks that are in a constant state of flux. A block is virtually impossible to hack. If it was possible, it would have the same effect as a bank robber reaching over the counter and not only taking money but all the bank’s records as well. Bitcoin miners can solve complex mathematical equations, and are awarded BTC, or bitcoins, for their effort in finding the solutions. | Investopedia | https://www.investopedia.com/terms/b/block-bitcoin-block.asp#:~:text=A%20block%20records%20some%20or,next%20block%20in%20the%20blockchain. |
| Bounty, Bounties | Bounties are a new primitive executed by Decentralized Autonomous Organizations (DAOs) who are creating their own micro-economies, issuing bounties to members to complete tasks to achieve their mission. By earning bounties that are denominated in a DAO’s native token, members are rewarded with ownership, in a way that makes web2 startup equity options look antiquated. Whether you are a writer, designer, or developer, there are bounties available for work that you can claim (or create). | Hackernoon | https://hackernoon.com/an-introduction-to-the-bounty-economy |
| Hodl, Hodlers | Hodl is an intentional misspelling of the word “hold,” which is used among cryptocurrency enthusiasts when encouraging traders to resist the urge to sell one’s holdings in response to market fluctuations. Following the term’s surge in popularity online, the backronym “hold on for dear life” was subsequently attributed to the term. | Know your meme | |
| coin | A coin, in cryptocurrency, is a representation of digital asset value that is generated via its own independent blockchain. These are different to ‘Tokens’ | Consensys | https://consensys.net/knowledge-base/a-blockchain-glossary-for-beginners |
| decentralisation, decentralization | Decentralization is the process of dispersing power away from a central authority. It has never been possible on a global scale—until now. But can it foster abundance without excess, multiplicity without superfluity, and complexity without chaos? | Mally Anderson, MIT press | https://jods.mitpress.mit.edu/pub/7vxemtm3/release/2 |
| p2p, Peer Network | Bitcoin is a peer-to-peer (P2P) network, meaning that there is no central entity. Instead, all “peers” in the network are equal and serve as validators of the state of the ledger. However, whereas central clearinghouses determine the state of ledgers in conventional finance, Satoshi Nakamoto realized that converging on the accurate state of a blockchain ledger in a P2P network required an innovative method that did not sacrifice the decentralized nature of the network — known as consensus. | Ledger – What is a blockchain | https://www.ledger.com/academy/blockchain/what-is-blockchain |
| Tokens | Tokens are cryptocurrencies that do not have their own blockchain but live on another blockchain. As they live on another blockchain, they benefit from its technology. (ERC-20 tokens…) | Ledger – The Difference Between Coins and Tokens | https://www.ledger.com/academy/crypto/what-is-the-difference-between-coins-and-tokens |
| ERC-20, ERC20 | ERC-20 is a token standard that outlines specifications for tokens to follow in order to function optimally on the Ethereum blockchain. With it, developers and entrepreneurs can build new tokens that interoperate within Ethereum’s ecosystem of decentralized apps. With almost 1,000 crypto assets that follow its specifications in circulation today, the ERC-20 token standard is one of the foundational pillars of the blockchain ecosystem. | Gemini – Cryptopedia | https://www.gemini.com/cryptopedia/erc20-token-standard-ethereum |
| Smart Contracts, Smart Contract | Smart contracts are a foundational technology in blockchain and a key element of the Ethereum network. A smart contract is self-executing code that carries out a set of instructions, which are then verified on the blockchain. These contracts are trustless, autonomous, decentralized, and transparent; they are irreversible and unmodifiable once deployed. Quite popular in decentralized finance (DeFi), they have several other use cases. Smart contracts can be bundled into decentralized applications (dApps) to execute more complex functions. | Gemini – Cryptopedia | https://www.gemini.com/cryptopedia/crypto-smart-contracts-explained |
| Proof of Stake | The Proof of Stake (PoS) concept states that a person can mine or validate block transactions according to how many coins they hold. This means that the more coins owned by a miner, the more mining power they have. | Investopdedia | https://www.investopedia.com/terms/p/proof-stake-pos.asp |
| CT | Crypto Twitter. Twitter is where the broader crypto community lives. | Future Proof – NFT Glossary | https://www.futureproof.xyz |
| PFP | Profile Picture. CryptoPunks are an example of a PFP NFT collection. Unlike generative art or tickets or any other type of NFT’s, PFP projects are commonly used as avatars on places like Twitter, Discord, and more. | Future Proof – NFT Glossary | https://www.futureproof.xyz |
| Doxxed | Discovered, i.e. no longer anonymous. | Future Proof – NFT Glossary | https://www.futureproof.xyz |
| Sweep the floor, swept the floor | An event where the cheapest pieces of a collection are purchased all at once (or in rapid succession), resulting in a new, higher “floor” price. | Future Proof – NFT Glossary | https://www.futureproof.xyz |
| pnd, pump and dump, pumpanddump, pump & dump | Pumping up the price of a project with the intention of coordinated selling at the top. These types of projects are usually hyped and marketed aggressively with the intent of selling (dumping) on newer entrants. | Future Proof – NFT Glossary | https://www.futureproof.xyz |
| Flipping, Flip | Buying & quickly reselling an NFT for a profit. | Future Proof – NFT Glossary | https://www.futureproof.xyz |
| Diamond Hands | Buying and holding crypto, tokens, NFT for a long period of time. | Future Proof – NFT Glossary | https://www.futureproof.xyz |
| POAP | Proof Of Attendance Protocol. A POAP is a digital badge of verification. A POAP can be awarded for completing a task, attending an event, or joining a community. POAPs are sent to individual wallet addresses. | Future Proof – NFT Glossary | https://www.futureproof.xyz |
| Fren | The metaverse term for ‘friend’ | Future Proof – NFT Glossary | https://www.futureproof.xyz |
| Lurkers, Lurker | Members in DAO who just watch and listen and don’t actively participate | ForeFront Learn X Protein | |
| ENS | The Ethereum Name Service is a protocol to assign human-readable and easy-to-remember addresses to Ethereum addresses and assets, homologous to the traditional internet’s DNS. | Consensys | https://consensys.net/knowledge-base/a-blockchain-glossary-for-beginners/?utm_campaign=ConsenSys%20Newsletter&utm_medium=email&_hsmi=92027603&utm_content=92026919&utm_source=hs_email |
| fiat currency, Fiat | Government-issued currency. For example, US Dollars (USD), Euros (EUR), Yuan (CNY), and Yen (JPY). | Consensys | https://consensys.net/knowledge-base/a-blockchain-glossary-for-beginners |
| fork, hard fork | A fork creates an alternative version of a blockchain, and are often enacted intentionally to apply upgrades to a network. Soft Forks render two chains with some compatibility, while Hard Forks create a new version of the chain that must be adopted to continue participation. In the instance of a contentious Hard Fork, this can create two versions of a blockchain network. See also “hard fork”. | Consensys | https://consensys.net/knowledge-base/a-blockchain-glossary-for-beginners |
| Vagueposting | When a project founder posts esoteric and fortune cookie style tweets for #thoughtleadership. | Zora | https://zine.zora.co/metaverse-glossary |
| Ser | Ser means “sir”. It is a way to respectfully introduce oneself or perhaps share an alternative point of view | ONE37 Pm | https://www.one37pm.com/nft/art/nft-twitter-meanings-definitions#:~:text=Ser,an%20alternative%20point%20of%20view. |
| McDonalds | Our backup career plan in case the NGMI scenario comes true “Sold a Fidenza for 5ETH. Applying now to McDonald’s”. | ONE37 Pm | https://www.one37pm.com/nft/art/nft-twitter-meanings-definitions#:~:text=Ser,an%20alternative%20point%20of%20view. |
| AB | ArtBlocks, currently the most important platform for generative art in the world, that has three collections: “Curated” (ABC), “Playground” and “Factory”. | ONE37 Pm | https://www.one37pm.com/nft/art/nft-twitter-meanings-definitions#:~:text=Ser,an%20alternative%20point%20of%20view. |
| Looks Rare | Rarity is often a driver of value in this space. Used ironically, more recently, used as a signal / in joke to signal that something actually is rare… | ONE37 Pm | https://www.one37pm.com/nft/art/nft-twitter-meanings-definitions#:~:text=Ser,an%20alternative%20point%20of%20view. |
| Szn, Season | Crypto szns are accelerated IRL seasons. NFT szns are accelerated crypto seasons. Might last as little as 1-4 weeks. Seasons are also used in DAOs to represent a set amount of time that the DAO uses to achieve its goal. E.g In season 1 we’re doing X, Y, Z. Seasons exist so that DAOs don’t have to try to achieve or answer everything at once, and can instead build over time. | ONE37 Pm | https://www.one37pm.com/nft/art/nft-twitter-meanings-definitions#:~:text=Ser,an%20alternative%20point%20of%20view. |
| Probably Nothing | “Probably nothing” means “probably something”. It is the polite way to FOMO, with just barely some plausible deniability. “Visa bought a punk. Probably nothing” | ONE37 Pm | https://www.one37pm.com/nft/art/nft-twitter-meanings-definitions#:~:text=Ser,an%20alternative%20point%20of%20view. |
| Up Only | Originally popularized by @Cryptopathic for ETH this year. It is everyone’s desired direction of NFT prices, certainly preferable to the less popular alternative of “Down Only” | Path.eth | https://twitter.com/Cryptopathic |
| Right Click Save As | Every non-NFT person’s first “gotcha” move when learning about NFTs – demonstrating their vast technical capacity to download an image from a web browser. Civilian: “I Right Click Saved 6529 and now it is my PFP” 6529: “Go right ahead” | ONE37 Pm | https://www.one37pm.com/nft/art/nft-twitter-meanings-definitions#:~:text=Ser,an%20alternative%20point%20of%20view. |
| Aave | Aave is an open-source and non-custodial lending protocol enabling the creation of money markets. Users can earn interest on deposits and also borrow assets. Aave provides depositors a Liquidity Token that represents an equivalent derivative deposit in an identical asset. For example, a user can deposit DAI and receive aDAI, which is a type of USD-based crypto derivative that essentially represents the value of the underlying DAI asset plus the interest gains from allowing the borrowing of one’s DAI. That aDAI, could then also be used to implement further strategies to potentially amplify their gains even further. | Yearn.Finance | https://docs.yearn.finance/resources/defi-glossary |
| Audit | An audit is either an internal or independent comprehensive review of a concept, system, process, company, or product. A comprehensive audit includes a thoughtful and in-depth look at the structure, strengths, weaknesses, and vulnerabilities of the thing or process being audited. Audits may be either informal or formal audits and are meant to be a tool to find and analyze weaknesses, so that issues and problems discovered during an audit may be remediated, mitigated, or corrected. | Yearn.Finance | https://docs.yearn.finance/resources/defi-glossary |
| Eth, Ethereum, Etheream | Ethereum is a blockchain platform with its own cryptocurrency, called Ether (ETH) or Ethereum, and its own programming language, called Solidity. As a blockchain network, Ethereum is a decentralized public ledger for verifying and recording transactions. The network’s users can create, publish, monetize, and use applications on the platform, and use its Ether cryptocurrency as payment. Insiders call the decentralized applications on the network “dApps.” As a cryptocurrency, Ethereum is second in market value only to Bitcoin, as of May 2021.1 | Investopedia | https://www.investopedia.com/terms/e/ethereum.asp |
| Beacon Chain | An Eth2 upgrade that will become the coordinator for the Ethereum network. It introduces proof-of-stake and validators to Ethereum. It will eventually be merged with Mainnet. | Ethereum.org | https://ethereum.org/en/glossary/ |
| consensus | When numerous nodes (usually most nodes on the network) all have the same blocks in their locally validated best blockchain. Not to be confused with consensus rules. | Ethereum.org | https://ethereum.org/en/glossary/ |
| contract, contract account | An account containing code that executes whenever it receives a transaction from another account (EOA or contract). | Ethereum.org | https://ethereum.org/en/glossary/ |
| Dapp | Decentralized application. At a minimum, it is a smart contract and a web user interface. More broadly, a Dapp is a web application that is built on top of open, decentralized, peer-to-peer infrastructure services. In addition, many Dapps include decentralized storage and/or a message protocol and platform. | Ethereum.org | https://ethereum.org/en/glossary/ |
| digital signature | A short string of data a user produces for a document using a private key such that anyone with the corresponding public key, the signature, and the document can verify that (1) the document was “signed” by the owner of that particular private key, and (2) the document was not changed after it was signed. | Ethereum.org | https://ethereum.org/en/glossary/ |
| Pow, Proof of Work | A piece of data (the proof) that requires significant computation to find. In Ethereum, miners must find a numeric solution to the Ethash algorithm that meets a network-wide difficulty target. | Ethereum.org | https://ethereum.org/en/glossary/ |
| sidechain | A scaling solution that uses a separate chain with different, often faster, consensus rules. A bridge is needed to connect these sidechains to Mainnet. Rollups also use sidechains, but they operate in collaboration with Mainnet instead. | Ethereum.org | https://ethereum.org/en/glossary/ |
| Stablecoin, stable coin, Stablecoins | A stablecoin is a digital currency that is pegged to a “stable” reserve asset like the U.S. dollar or gold. Stablecoins are designed to reduce volatility relative to unpegged cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin. | Coinbase | https://www.coinbase.com/learn/crypto-basics/what-is-a-stablecoin |
| FOMO | Stands for “fear of missing out” — and is generally most intense when markets are rising fast. FOMO can lead to emotional trading and bad decision making — it’s dangerous because hindsight is 20/20, making it all too easy to regret the gains you would have made if you had only timed all your trades perfectly. (Nobody times all of their trades perfectly.) A good way to reduce FOMO is to have a strategy and stick to it, especially if you believe that the asset you’re investing in will rise in value over the longer term. One popular option is dollar-cost averaging (or DCA), in which you invest the same amount every week or month without worrying about what the market is doing. | Coinbase | https://www.coinbase.com/learn/tip-and-tutorials/crypto-slang-guide |
| FUD | Stands for “fear, uncertainty, and doubt.” It’s a classic public relations and propaganda tactic. The idea is to warp public perception about a product, technology, or candidate by strategically releasing misinformation designed to create a negative emotional response. Mainframe-computer architect and entrepreneur Gene Amdahl is often credited with popularizing the term in the 1980s. He used it to describe the way IBM salespeople of the era worked to delegitimize competitors’ products, painting them as unreliable and untrustworthy. In the crypto space, FUD often refers to general skepticism around the technology (from the media or from traditional-finance analysts), but the idea can also be used by proponents of a specific token or protocol in an attempt to disarm criticism. What should you do when faced with FUD? Embrace another popular crypto acronym, and DYOR. Do your own research. | Coinbase | https://www.coinbase.com/learn/tip-and-tutorials/crypto-slang-guide |
| The flippening, flippening | The flippening is a hypothetical event in which Ethereum’s market cap will one day eclipse Bitcoin’s. It can also be used to describe any similar situation where a smaller or less-established token or protocol might overtake a larger rival. | Coinbase | https://www.coinbase.com/learn/tip-and-tutorials/crypto-slang-guide |
| Laser eyes | In 2021, avid Bitcoin proponents began signalling their support for the cryptocurrency by adding “laser eyes” to their Twitter photo. NFL superstar Tom Brady, Paris Hilton, Elon Musk, Wyoming senator Cynthia Lummis, and MicroStrategy CEO Michael Saylor are a few of the famous names who have taken part. The meme is often associated with the hashtag #LaserRayUntil100K — indicating support for the cryptocurrency’s potential to break the $100,000 mark. | Coinbase | https://www.coinbase.com/learn/tip-and-tutorials/crypto-slang-guide |
| Memecoin | Dogecoin (DOGE) is the original memecoin — it’s literally a cryptocurrency based on a meme that was popular around the time it was invented. But in 2021, when Dogecoin dramatically rose in value, a huge wave of other tokens with absurd names emerged (in part made possible by decentralized exchanges like Sushiswap, which allow anyone to easily list a token). In May 2021, Ethereum cofounder Vitalik Buterin donated more than $1 billion in DOGE-inspired memecoins like AKITA, SHIB, and Dogelon Mars (ELON) towards COVID-relief efforts in India and other causes. The coins had been deposited in Buterin’s crypto wallet in an attempt to make traders believe he was an investor. | Coinbase | https://www.coinbase.com/learn/tip-and-tutorials/crypto-slang-guide |
| Rekt | What happens if you get swept up by FOMO and end up becoming the victim of a pump and dump? You get rekt. Getting rekt in its original gaming context means to lose badly, and the definition is pretty much the same in crypto. | Coinbase | https://www.coinbase.com/learn/tip-and-tutorials/crypto-slang-guide |
| Erc721, Erc-721 | ERC-721 refers to a token standard that can be found on the Ethereum blockchain. The more common term used to refer to these assets is non-fungible tokens — an asset class that exploded in popularity in late 2020 and early 2021. Non-fungible tokens (or NFTs for short) refer to tokens that have unique characteristics, setting them apart from other tokens. | Coin Market Cap | https://coinmarketcap.com/alexandria/glossary/erc-721 |
| Crypto, Cryptocurrencies, cryptocurrency, crypto currency, crypto-currency | A cryptocurrency is a digital or virtual currency that is secured by cryptography, which makes it nearly impossible to counterfeit or double-spend. Many cryptocurrencies are decentralized networks based on blockchain technology—a distributed ledger enforced by a disparate network of computers. A defining feature of cryptocurrencies is that they are generally not issued by any central authority, rendering them theoretically immune to government interference or manipulation. | Investopedia | https://www.investopedia.com/terms/c/cryptocurrency.asp |
| metaverse, meta-verse, meta verse | The word “metaverse” is a portmanteau of the prefix “meta” (meaning beyond) and “universe”; the term is typically used to describe the concept of a future iteration of the internet, made up of persistent, shared, 3D virtual spaces linked into a perceived virtual universe. More recently its also come to encompass the worlds which DAOs live in, discord, servers, telegram groups. Fully online is the metaverse | Forbes – Cathy Hack | https://www.forbes.com/sites/cathyhackl/2020/07/05/the-metaverse-is-coming–its-a-very-big-deal/ |
| Moon, To the moon | this phrase implies that the value of an asset will go so high that it will reach the literal moon. This is used by shills, bulls, and during a bull market, essentially everyone. Another form of this is “wen moon?” This is used to express one’s impatience with an asset which is not increasing in value as quickly as they had hoped. See also: Lambo | Unstoppable Domains | https://unstoppabledomains.com/blog/the-web3-glossary |
| Lambo | short for Lamborghini. The ability to purchase Lambo is a goalpost for success, used in a myriad of phrases in the crypto and degen spaces. For instance “wen Lambo?” roughly translates to “I just purchased $43 worth of Dogecoin. When will the value of said investment increase enough to enable the purchase of a Lamborghini?” | Unstoppable Domains | https://unstoppabledomains.com/blog/the-web3-glossary |
| Defi | DeFi stands for “decentralized finance” and refers to the ecosystem comprised of financial applications that are being developed on top of blockchain systems. DeFi may be defined as the movement that promotes the use of decentralized networks and open source software to create multiple types of financial services and products. The idea is to develop and operate financial DApps on top of a transparent and trustless framework, such as permissionless blockchains and other peer-to-peer (P2P) protocols. | Binance | https://academy.binance.com/en/glossary/defi |
| Bags | In the crypto space, the word bag refers to the coins and tokens one is holding as part of their portfolio. Typically, the term is used to describe a significant amount of a particular cryptocurrency. There is no defined minimum, but when the value is relatively high, one could say they are holding “heavy bags” of a certain coin or token. Investors that hold bags for long periods are often called “bagholders.” Although the term may apply to different situations, it is usually related to investors that insist on holding their bags despite the poor market performance. In other words, bagholders are HODLers that stick to their assets even if their bags experience a significant decline in value (during strong bear markets). | Binance | https://academy.binance.com/en/glossary/bags |
| Bear, Bear Markets, Bearmarkets | The term bear market refers to a negative trend in the prices of a market. It is widely used not only in the cryptocurrency space but also in the traditional markets, such as stocks, bonds, real estate, and commodities markets. Generally speaking, a bear market refers to a strong market downtrend that presents significant falling prices over a relatively short period of time. When compared to traditional markets, cryptocurrency markets are smaller and thus more volatile. Therefore, it is quite common to see stronger and prolonged crypto bear markets, where 85% price drops are not that rare. | Binance | https://academy.binance.com/en/glossary/bear-market |
| Ops Sec, Ops-sec, Opssec | Operations security (OPSEC) is a process that identifies critical information to determine if friendly actions can be observed by enemy intelligence, determines if information obtained by adversaries could be interpreted to be useful to them, and then executes selected measures that eliminate or reduce adversary exploitation of friendly critical information. This is like the best operations for security practices, wallet safety, safety of tokens. | Wikipedia | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operations_security |
| FWB, Friends with benefits | Friends with Benefits is the ultimate cultural membership powered by a community of our favorite Web3 artists, operators, and thinkers bound together by shared values and shared incentives ($FWB). | Friends with Benefits | https://www.fwb.help/ |
| FF, Forefront | fore·front /ˈfôrˌfrənt/ The leading content and insights aggregator on social tokens, DAOs and Web3. The port of entry to social clubs and digital cities. The digital hub that unlocks infinite paths and roads to web3 creative playground. | ForeFront | https://forefront.market/ |
| send, full send, send it | “send it” – expressing sentiment that the price of an asset is about to rise precipitously “going full send” – is when an entire community experiences euphoria that a price is rising, or will rise imminently Used in a sentence: “So funny how a little up makes everyone go full send” | FWB discord, seen elsewhere 🙂 | https://discord.com/channels/749418486874243212/767937898099769364/858872546014658570 |
| Coinvise, Coin vise | A platform building Powerful tools for creators to launch a token & build a tokenized community | Coinvise | https://www.coinvise.co/dashboard |
| lfg | Lets Fucking Go | Urban Dictionary / Gaming culture | https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Lfg |
| Web3, Web 3, Web Three | Web 3.0 (or better known as Web3) is what is currently being built now, it is what many hope is the future of the Web. At the centre of Web3 sits values and purpose which would revolutionise how we use and view the web today. In Web3, the Web uses blockchain technologies and ‘protocols’ to bypass and decentralise applications which have been centralised previously. This allows users to directly share with each other instead of being at the mercy of a centralised platforms, for example, a social media company owned by a CEO or board of directors. | Protein Community | https://www.proteincommunity.xyz/learn |
| SeedClub, Seed Club | Seed Club is a DAO that builds, supports and invests in tokenized communities. It’s an OG in the Social Tokens space, runs an accelerator, VC arm and OG DAO members include: Andre Anjos ($RAC), Alex Masmej ($ALEX), Connie Digital ($HUE), Brian Flynn (Rabbit Hole), Carlos Gomes ($FF), Wong Joon Ian ($JOON) Jordan Lyall ($MEME), Joyce Yang ($GCR), Louis Giraux (SuperRare), Trevor McFedries (Brud), Richard Kim ($RNG) | Seed Club | https://seedclub.xyz/ |
| BSC | Binance Smart Chain or BSC is an alternative to Ethereum and other leading DeFi platforms. BSC gained popularity after Ethereum failed to prove viable to those who couldn’t afford the fees. Binance, a leading cryptocurrency trading exchange, announced BSC in September 2020. | Yahoo! Finance | https://finance.yahoo.com/news/ten-top-binance-smart-chain-152704318.html |
| governance | the methods or ways in which decisions pertaining to an organization or community are made. | @mari_world_ | @mari_world_ |
| Blockchain | Blockchain is a specific type of database. It differs from a typical database in the way it stores information; blockchains store data in blocks that are then chained together. As new data comes in it is entered into a fresh block. Once the block is filled with data it is chained onto the previous block, which makes the data chained together in chronological order. Different types of information can be stored on a blockchain but the most common use so far has been as a ledger for transactions. In Bitcoin’s case, blockchain is used in a decentralized way so that no single person or group has control—rather, all users collectively retain control. Decentralized blockchains are immutable, which means that the data entered is irreversible. For Bitcoin, this means that transactions are permanently recorded and viewable to anyone. | investopedia | https://www.investopedia.com/terms/b/blockchain.asp |
| Learn-to-earn | The term “Learn-to-earn” defines a mechanism that rewards users when they can prove they’ve learned something. Users often receive cryptocurrencies when they send proof of their new knowledge. | @CDTEliot | @CDTEliot |
| wen | when?… usually in eager anticipation. can be somewhat pleading, though also used in humor. The bane of many a mod. In use, does not need a verb. “Wen token” rather than “Wen is the token launch” | @gustavo | gustavogg#0150 |
| IDO | Initial dex offerings, or IDOs, are tokens that represent any type of asset hosted on a decentralized exchange (DEX) — an IDO is when a project launches a token through a decentralized liquidity exchange. IDOs can be created for anything from cryptocurrency to a music album, to aether powered battle ships. IDOs offer businesses a tool for engaging their communities in an economy that both enriches their products and services while allowing them to make smart business decisions regarding their assets. | coinmarketcap | https://coinmarketcap.com/alexandria/glossary/initial-dex-offering |
| Token | In cryptocurrency, “token” is often used as a synonym for “cryptocurrency.” Often the two terms are combined and the term “cryptocurrency token” is used. Consider, the unit of account on the Bitcoin blockchain is the Bitcoin token, and the united of account on the Ethereum blockchain is the Ethereum token. Cryptocurrencies exist as tokenized data (a type of encrypted data used in both cryptocurrency and computer security in general), therefore cryptocurrencies are often called tokens. That said, sometimes people use the term token to specifically refer to a digital asset that exists on another cryptocurrency’s blockchain (for example OMG is an ERC-20 token on the Ethereum blockchain). With all that covered, a token is just a string of numbers and letters used in types of cryptography like computer security (for example the type of security underlying cryptocurrency technology). | Crypto Currency Facts | https://cryptocurrencyfacts.com/what-is-a-cryptocurrency-token/ |
| NFT | Non-fungible is an economic term that you could use to describe things like your furniture, a song file, or your computer. These things are not interchangeable for other items because they have unique properties. Fungible items, on the other hand, can be exchanged because their value defines them rather than their unique properties. For example, ETH or dollars are fungible because 1 ETH / $1 USD is exchangeable for another 1 ETH / $1 USD. As everything becomes more digital, there’s a need to replicate the properties of physical items like scarcity, uniqueness, and proof of ownership. NFTs are tokens that we can use to represent ownership of unique items (each individual token is completely unique and is not divisible.) NFTs are minted through smart contracts that assign ownership and manage the transferability of the NFT’s. NFTs have many different use cases such as powering a new creator economy where creators don’t hand ownership of their content over to the platforms they use to publicize it. Ownership is baked into the content itself. | Ethereum.org | https://ethereum.org/en/nft/#what-are-nfts |
| Public ledger, publicledger | A public ledger is used as a record-keeping system that maintains participants’ identities in secure and (pseudo-)anonymous form, their respective cryptocurrency balances, and a record book of all the genuine transactions executed between network participants. Similar to bank records, the transaction details on a cryptocurrency public ledger can be verified and queried by the two transacting participants. However, no central authority or network participants can know the identity of the participants. The public ledger is distributed as participants connect and contribute to the blockchain network activities keeping it agile and functional. It is completely decentralized, so that everyone can participate in the network. | Investopedia | https://www.investopedia.com/tech/what-cryptocurrency-public-ledger/ |
| Wag bat, WAGBAT | We’re all gonna buy a team’ – coined by The Krause House, a DAO / Community of hoops fanatics that are crazy enough to purchase and operate an NBA team as a DAO’ WAGBAT | Krause House | https://twitter.com/KrauseHouseDAO |
| Crypto Faucet, crypto faucet | A crypto faucet is an app or a website that distributes small amounts of cryptocurrencies as a reward for completing easy tasks. They’re given the name “faucets” because the rewards are small, just like small drops of water dripping from a leaky faucet. | Coin Market Cap | https://coinmarketcap.com/alexandria/article/what-is-a-crypto-faucet |
| Rollup, roll-up, rollup | Rollups are solutions that perform transaction execution outside the main Ethereum chain (layer 1) but post transaction data on layer 1. As transaction data is on layer 1, rollups are secured by layer 1. Inheriting the security properties of layer 1 while performing execution outside of layer 1 is a defining characteristic of rollups. Three simplified properties of rollups are: transaction execution outside layer 1 data or proof of transactions is on layer 1 a rollup smart contract in layer 1 that can enforce correct transaction execution on layer 2 by using the transaction data on layer 1 Rollups require “operators” to stake a bond in the rollup contract. This incentivises operators to verify and execute transactions correctly. Useful for: reducing fees for users open participation fast transaction throughput | Ethereum.org | https://ethereum.org/en/developers/docs/scaling/layer-2-rollups/#:~:text=Rollups%20are%20solutions%20that%20perform,transaction%20data%20on%20layer%201.&text=Inheriting%20the%20security%20properties%20of,a%20defining%20characteristic%20of%20rollups. |
| copypasta | In short: a text-only meme. From Wikipedia: “A copypasta is a block of text that is copied and pasted across the Internet by individuals through online forums and social networking websites.” | Wikipedia.org | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copypasta |
| gg | GG means “good game.” In multiplayer competitive games, GG is used as a mark of sportsmanship and an acknowledgment that you had fun while battling against your opponents. For many players, it’s standard practice to type GG into the chat at the end of every match. It’s similar to a handshake or hug at the end of a live sporting event. | How To Geek | https://www.howtogeek.com/466547/what-does-gg-mean-and-how-do-you-use-it/ |
| Smart Contract | A smart contract is a self-executing contract with the terms of the agreement between buyer and seller being directly written into lines of code. The code and the agreements contained therein exist across a distributed, decentralized blockchain network. The code controls the execution, and transactions are trackable and irreversible. | Investopedia | https://www.investopedia.com/terms/s/smart-contracts.asp |
| Polygon | Polygon is a layer 2 sidechain built ontop of the Ethereum blockchain that enables users to transact with dramatically lower fees | Decrypt | https://decrypt.co/resources/what-is-polygon-matic-and-why-it-matters-for-ethereum |
| oracle | An oracle is just a provider of data. An oracle gives smart contracts answers to questions about the world. In most cases, without an oracle supplying information, there would be no way for a smart contract to be able to know the things it needs to know in order to do its job. | Delphi | https://medium.com/@DelphiSystems/the-oracle-problem-856ccbdbd14f |
| Nocoiner | A skeptic who has stayed out of the crypto market, either from sheer bewilderment or the suspicion that it’s a giant pyramid scheme. A tweet from @Gemsays: “A nocoiner normie friend found my Twitter & said ‘you look like a crazy person trying to start an internet anti-establishment cult.’ ” | NY mag | https://nymag.com/intelligencer/article/crypto-nft-twitter-discord-guide.html |
| Testnet | A testnet is an instance of a blockchain-powered by the same or a newer version of the underlying software, to be used for testing and experimentation without risk to real funds or the main chain. | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Testnet | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Testnet |
| Grant | A grant is a fund given by an entity – often a public body, charitable foundation, or a specialized grant-making institution – to an individual or another entity for a specific purpose linked to public benefit. Unlike loans, grants are not to be paid back. | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grant_(money) | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grant_(money) |
| Consensus, Blockchain Consensus | Blockchain is a distributed peer-to-peer technology. All nodes in the network have to agree on the chain’s state and its valid blocks. Since there’s no centralized control and nodes cannot be trusted, reaching this agreement is not trivial. Therefore, every blockchain implementation must define a consensus algorithm to agree on the truth. | myself | https://twitter.com/germany_beal |
| Community | A group of individuals who share a mutual concern for one another’s welfare | The Art of Community | https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/28762683-the-art-of-community |
| Gus Lighting | When Gus makes you question your own reality | PRTN Discord | @willprotein |