Crypto Slang – these 50 words you need to know!
If you are new to the world of Bitcoin and all co., you will feel like you are in a foreign country at the beginning. So many words, terms and acronyms that you have never heard of before… YOLO, HODL, DOYR to name just a few examples. If you want to join in a discussion, you should know the most common terms so that you don’t look like a complete fool in the next debate with friends or colleagues.We have collected the 50 most important terms for you and explain their meaning. We have collected the 50 most important terms in the cryptoverse for you and explain their meaning.
50 Crypto words you need to know
AIRDROP
An AIRDROP is a method to distribute a new coin or token. Those who participate in an airdrop are usually sent a few of the coins for free or for a specific task.
Airdrops are good to draw attention to a new project or to boost the decentralization of a project.
ALTCOINS
ALTCOINS is a term for all crypto currencies that exist besides Bitcoin. Currently there are more than 18.000 different cryptocurrencies, but many of them are just SHITCOINS!
ATH
ATH stands for all-time high, i.e. the highest price a coin has reached in the past. The ATH for Bitcoin is currently $68.680. We are curious when we will reach the next ATH.
BAGHOLDER
There are some traders who own large amounts of cryptocurrencies and do not sell them under any circumstances, they are bagholding no matter how the price develops, they are HODLing.
BITCOIN MAXIMALIST
There are individuals in the Cryptoverse who believe that Bitcoin is the only true cryptocurrency of value. These people ar called or call themselves Bitcoin maximalists.
BLOCK
BLOCKS are the base of the blockchain. Blocks contain data on addresses and transactions carried out with a cryptocurrency. After a certain time or size, the blocks are replaced by a new created block. The old block is added to the end of the blockchain.
BLOCKCHAIN
The BLOCKCHAIN is like a logbook with all transactions ever made with a specific cryptocurrency. The blockchain therefore grows from day to day as new transactions are constantly being grouped into blocks and added to the blockchain.
BTD
BTD is the acronym for “Buy The Dip” and is used when a price has fallen and the person believes the price has reached the bottom (i.e. the lowest value). Those who still have not bought may also read BTFD = “Buy The Fu**king Dip”.
BULLISH/BEARISH
BULLISH and BEARISH are terms used in stock trading. Bullish means having a positive attitude towards the future market action and expecting the market to go up. Bearish means having a negative attitude towards the future market and expecting the market to go down.
CRYPTOGRAPHY
CRYPTOGRAPHY is a mathematical method used to secure and transmit data in a specific form so that only those for whom the data is actually intended can read it. As the term cryptocurrency suggests, cryptography is an essential part of the entire system and is used to verify and secure transactions on the blockchain.
DAPPS
DAPP is an acronym for “Decentralized Application” and refers to programs that run on a blockchain. DAPPs can be, for example, games, file-sharing services, social media sites, or websites. DAPPs have many advantages over conventional apps and will certainly become even more important in the future.
DECENTRALIZATION
DECENTRALIZATION describes the basic idea of Bitcoin. The control and management of a system is shifted from a central entity to many equivalent entities. This is also referred to as peer-to-peer. Every participant in this network has the same rights.
DEFI
DEFI stands for “Decentralized Finance” and is an open, modular financial system based on blockchain. With DEFI, users are to be networked with each other and financial products can be offered entirely or with very little influence from a central company (such as a traditional bank).
DEX
DEX stands for “Decentralized Exchange“. Just as with DEFI, the basic idea here is to create a trading platform for which no company is actually responsible. DEX is operated and maintained by the users themselves. Examples of such decentralized exchanges are dYdX, Pancake Swap or Osmosis.
DIAMOND HANDS
DIAMOND HANDS is an expression for traders who are not easily shaken out by big price slides or rises. They continue to HODL and watch the panic in the market with calmness.
DYOR
DYOR stands for “Do Your Own Research” which means something like: Don’t rely on the statements of others but inform yourself!”
FIAT
FIAT comes from the Latin and means “let it happen”. Transferred to the crypto area, it refers to all currencies that can be created without an underlying value. So actually all common currencies such as USD, GBP, EUR, AUD, etc. are FIAT, because these can be created easily and indefinitely by the central banks.
FLIPPENING
FLIPPENING is a term used to describe the moment when the total market capitalization of Ethereum (ETH) overtakes that of Bitcoin (BTC). However, this has not happened yet.
FOMO
FOMO stands for “Fear of missing out“.In other words, the fear of missing out. The term is often used when prices rise very quickly “to the moon” and traders are afraid of missing the rise of a lifetime.
FORK
A FORK refers a split-off of a cryptocurrency or a blockchain-based network. In the case of a “SOFTFORK” which is mostly used for a protocol update, only one blockchain remains in operation, while in the case of a “HARDFORK” two independent blockchains are created. For example, Bitcoin Cash (BCH) was created by a hardfork of Bitcoin (BTC), or Ethereum (ETH) is a fork of Ethereum Classic (ETC).
FUD
FUD is the acronym for fear, uncertainty and doubt. This is often used to describe disinformation campaigns or fakenews , which are intended to confuse consumers and competitors.
HALVING
HALVING refers to the reduction by half of the reward for mining Bitcoin. Every approximately 210,000 blocks (about 4 years) there is a new halving of the miner reward. Since the last halving in May 2020, 6.25 BTC per block is distributed to miners, after the next halving (March 2024) the reward per block will be only 3.125 BTC. The halving is a very influential moment and also has a great positive impact on the price, because the newly added quantity is increasingly scarce.
HASHRATE
The HASHRATE is a measure of the computational and processing power available through crypto mining on a network. The hashrate is influenced by the number of miners and their performance. The higher the hashrate, the more robust the network is against attacks.
HODL
The abbreviation HODL stands for “Hold on your dear life” which means “Keep your coins at all costs”. The term was created by a Reddit user who got the word “hold” wrong.
ICO
ICO stands for “Initial Coin Offering” and refers to the initial issue of a new coin or token. Crypto projects raise money through ICO and fund their business model. In 2017 to 2018, ICOs were very popular, but this has changed as many of the projects were just SCAM and investors lost a lot of money. In addition, many ICOs have been classified as securities by the SEC which causes a lot of hassle in registering and auditing the projects.
KYC
KYC stands for “Know Your Customer” and describes a process that financial institutions must undertake to collect the identity and other information of users in order to take action against money laundering and other crimes.
MINING
MINING describes the process of verifying blockchain transactions. The miners have to solve complicated tasks with the help of their computing power in order to ensure the security of the network. As a reward, the miner or mining pool that has “found” a new block receives a reward in the form of cryptocurrencies.
NFTs
An NFT is a “Nonfungible Token“, i.e. a non-exchangeable asset. This means that each token is unique, or the right or ownership to a unique digital asset is held with it.
Most cryptocurrencies are exchangeable “fungible.” For example, it doesn’t matter which of the 21 million BTC you own, the price of each coin is the same. With NFTs, it’s a completely different story. For example, CRYPTOPUNKS cost between $180,000 and $178,000,000. Totally crazy for a JPG, right?
NODE
A NODE is a network participant (computer) that runs the software of a blockchain and keeps a copy of the entire blockchain.
NOCOINER
NOCOINER refers to a person who does not own any coins or who is skeptical about cryptocurrencies.
OTC
OTC stands for “Over-The-Counter” and refers to transactions of cryptocurrencies that are not settled via normal exchanges on the order book. Mostly, large purchases or sales are made OTC, as they would otherwise influence the price too much. In addition, this type of trading offers more privacy for buyers and sellers.
P2P / PEER TO PEER
P2P or PEER-TO-PEER is the name for networks in which all participants are directly linked to each other and everyone has the same rights. The communication does not go through a central server but directly from user to user.
PROOF-OF-STAKE / POS
PROOF OF STAKE is a method to validate transactions in order to receive a reward. POS is much more energy efficient than POW, since the consent (i.e. the vote on whether a transaction is legitimate) is calculated based on the coins accumulated.
PROOF-OF-WORK / POW
PROOF OF WORK is another way to validate transactions. Complex calculations have to be performed by the miners to protect the network from attacks and forged requests. POW algorithms consume more power than POS and are therefore in the focus of politics and global climate debate.
PUBLIC KEY
A PUBLIC KEY is a sequence of characters consisting of numbers and letters with which one can prove to have access to an address. The public key can be shared to receive cryptocurrencies.
PRIVATE KEY
A PRIVATE KEY is a sequence of characters consisting of numbers and letters with which you can prove that you have access to an address. The Private Key is like the password to a safe deposit box where your assets are stored. The private key is needed to send cryptocurrencies from the wallet and must not be shared with others like the public key.
REKT
REKT is an acronym for “WRECKED” and is used to denote large loss due to a price slide.
SATOSHIS / SATS
A SATOSHI is the smallest amount you can own in Bitcoin. Named after the anonymous Bitcoin inventor Satoshi Nakamoto. 1 Bitcoin (BTC) is 100,000,000 Satoshis. Besides the unit Satoshi, mBTC (MilliBitcoins) = 0.001 BTC and μBTC (MircoBitcoins) =0.000001 BTC are also used from time to time.
SCAM
Since the entire crypto sector is still relatively unregulated, SCAMMERS have an easy game. Scam is when someone tries to get your private keys, but also entire crypto projects that are founded only to pull money out of people’s pockets. Mostly based on a Ponzi scheme. A good example is/was ONECOIN.
SEC
The SEC is the U.S. regulatory agency for securities trading and exchanges. It has the task of protecting investors and capital, monitoring the market and proposing and enforcing laws for securities. The SEC is also trying to gain more and more influence in the field of cryptocurrencies, but for many projects it is still not legally clear whether they fall under the jurisdiction of the SEC at all. A prominent example of this is Ripple’s cryptocurrency XRP.
SHILL
A SHILL is someone who tries to convince other people to buy something or find something great because he himself is in possession of it and thus his own fortune increases.
SHITCOIN
A SHITCOIN is a cryptocurrency that obviously has no purpose or innovation compared to existing projects and has significant crash potential.
SMART CONTRACT
A SMART CONTRACT is a programmed contract stored on the blockchain that is automated and executed without the influence of a person.
STABLECOIN
A STABLECOIN is a cryptocurrency or token whose value is linked to another asset. For example, a USD stablecoin such as the Theter is exactly equal to the value of one dollar. Stablecoins are often used on exchanges to facilitate the trading of cryptocurrencies as exchanging them for FIAT money often involves tax obligations.
TO THE MOON
TO THE MOON is a common expression when a coin goes through the roof and experiences a high price increase. So it goes almost vertically towards the sky and the moon.
TOKEN
TOKENS are a subtype of coins, they are not necessarily based on their own blockchains. The function of tokens is different from that of coins. While coins can be described as digital currency, tokens are much more variable in their purpose, so they can also prove ownership rights (such as the car title). Tokens are much easier to produce as they do not require their own blockchain, but are issued through a smart contract based on an existing blockchain such as ETHEREUM. A blockchain can thus contain thousands of tokens.
WGMI/WAGMI
Short for WE (ALL) GONNA MAKE IT and is used to express hope and courage for something.
WHALE
A WHALE is someone who owns a large amount of a coin or token and can thus influence the market.
WHEN LAMBO?
WHEN LAMBO? one asks, usually meant ironically, to find out from others when an investment in a coin will finally be worth as much as a Lamborghini.
YOLO
YOU ONLY LIFE ONES – A saying that underscores a guiding behavior in a certain way. In relation to Crypto, YOLO is often used when you go ALL IN and put all your eggs in one basket.
