Glossary

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0 - 9

0x

1. Ethereum addresses begin with the "0x" prefix in order to specify that the characters should be interpreted as a hexadecimal number by smart contracts and other programs.

2. A decentralized exchange protocol. https://www.0xprotocol.org/

See also: #ZRX

51% Attack

A takeover of more than 50% of the nodes or mining power of a network by a single individual, organization, or entity. Any person or group controlling the majority of the network can exclude valid transactions, include fraudulent transactions, and otherwise manipulate the blockchain history for their own gain.

A

Address

In the context of Cryptocurrency, an address is an alphanumeric string of characters representing the public half of a public/private key pair belonging to a specific user. Much like an email address, this identifier can be shared publicly, embedded in links, and presented as a QR code to other users in order to accept funds or assets on the respective blockchain.

A single user may have multiple addresses and their corresponding private keys across multiple blockchains and wallets. Cryptocurrency wallets in the form of software, browser extensions, apps, or hardware devices allow for the management of and access to addresses under a user’s control.

Services like the Ethereum Name Service (ENS) map human-friendly domain names to Ethereum addresses for a fee, allowing them to be more easily shared and remembered.

See also: #ENS, #Public Address, #Public Key, #Wallet Address

Air Gap

A security measure implemented to isolate a device or system physically, not connecting to other devices or the internet, adding another layer of protection between the sensitive data stored therein and potential hackers or malware.

See also: #Cold Wallet, #Hardware Wallet

Airdrop

A distribution method employed by projects or creators to send coins, tokens, or NFTs directly to users’s wallets. This distribution is often a reward for performing certain actions or meeting certain criteria, like completing simple tasks on social media, participating in community discussions or activities, or holding specific digital items during a certain timeframe.

Allowlist

A pre-approved list of accounts, users, or wallets, usually compiled in preparation for the release of an anticipated project. Limiting participation to a select few might be done to reward early adopters, or as an attempt to avoid bottlenecks created by an overwhelming influx of users trying to complete blockchain transactions simultaneously, which can cause technical issues and drive up transaction costs significantly, resulting in a negative experience for many.

Alpha

Slang

Most likely adopted from the practice of designating the initial phase of software testing "Alpha Testing," where the product is only available to internal users. In the context of web3, ‘’’alpha’’’ refers to information regarding crypto products or organizations that has not yet been divulged publicly. Informally, it can refer to any matter where there might be information not yet widely known: ‘’”What’s the alpha with your new neighbor?”’’

Altcoin

Originally used in reference to any cryptocurrency other than Bitcoin, this shortened version of “alternative coins” is often now more subjectively used. Many agree that Ethereum has graduated from this category with its widespread use and significant market cap.

See also: #Fork

Alts

Abbreviation - Short for Altcoins, or in the context of social media, alias account profiles.

See also: #Sock Puppet

AML

Acronym - Anti-Money Laundering

Rules, regulations, laws, and practices established and enforced by financial regulatory agencies around the globe to prevent money laundering by criminals. Compliance includes verifying the identity of customers and collecting relevant information from them, as well as monitoring transaction patterns in order to identify and report suspicious activities. AML regulations may vary by country or jurisdiction.

See also: #BitLicense, #KYC

AMM

Acronym - Automated Market Maker

A platform, project, or exchange that eliminates the need for a traditional broker to set the price of an exchange between buyers and sellers by automating the process. This is accomplished by utilizing algorithmic pricing, liquidity pools, and smart contracts.

Decentralized tools that perform tasks related to AMM democratize markets by significantly increasing accessibility to trading cryptocurrencies, tokens, and NFTs. However, issues like insufficient liquidity and deceptive behavior by bad actors can, and often do, result in the loss of funds by participants.

See also: #DEX, #Liquidity, #Slippage, #SushiSwap, #Uniswap

Anchor

Framework for the development of programs or smart contracts on the Solana network.

See also: #Smart Contract, #Solana

Ape

Slang

Possibly inspired by the meteoric rise in the popularity of the BAYC (Bored Ape Yacht Club) NFT project when it launched, “to ape in” describes the act of rushing to purchase a coin or NFT project without taking time to adequately research or investigate.

Since blockchain assets are often very volatile, many traders of web3 digital assets realize that some purchases are more of a gamble than an investment and do not assign much of a negative connotation to this term.

See also: #BAYC, #DYOR, #NFA, #Yuga Labs

API

Acronym - Application Programming Interface

A set of predefined programming standards and protocols that specify how applications communicate with another program. APIs encourage standardization across platforms, blockchains, and tools for a variety of online ecosystems, as well as automation that can provide real-time information to users in friendly formats.

AppChain

Abbreviation - Short for Application-Specific Blockchain.

A secondary or tertiary blockchain built to facilitate the scalability, modularity, and interoperability of a specific application or applications by providing an optimized and tailored environment. This environment is often built atop a primary network in order to take advantage of its security or consensus mechanisms.

See also: #Blockchain Trilemma, #Layer 1, #Layer 2, #Modular Blockchain, #Sidechain

AR

Acronym - Augmented Reality

Arbitrum

An Ethereum layer 2 blockchain network built as a scaling solution to alleviate congestion and reduce transaction fees.

See also: #Ethereum, #Layer 2, #Transaction Fee

Archival Nodes

Nodes that store a complete historical record of a blockchain's data, including all previous states and transactions, but do not necessarily validate blocks.

See also: #Blockchain, #Genesis Block, #Node

ASIC

Acronym - Application-Specific Integrated Circuit

Specialized hardware optimized for performing the calculations required to mine cryptocurrencies utilizing Proof of Work algorithms.

The use of ASICs is considered controversial both in and out of web3 due to their high energy use and potential for centralization when concentrated in mining farms.

ATH

Acronym - All Time High

ATL

Acronym - All Time Low

Avalanche

An open-source platform including several blockchains built for fast transaction finality and high throughput. Networked blockchains are known as subnets and can define their own token economics, security, and execution logic.

AVAX is the native token of Avalanche.

https://docs.avax.network/

See also: #Subnet

AVAX

Ticker Symbol - The native token of Avalanche.

See also: #Avalanche

B

Base Fee

An algorithmically determined dynamic transaction fee, typically referring to Ethereum. This fee is determined by the network itself to prevent sudden spikes and is adjusted based on network activity and congestion. Transaction fees are collected by miners as an incentive to validate and include transactions in each block, as well as secure the network.

See also: #Ethereum, #Gas, #Gas Estimator, #Gas Fees

BAYC

Acronym - Bored Ape Yacht Club

An NFT collection on The Ethereum blockchain consisting of 10,000 PFPs of varying rarity.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bored_Ape

https://yuga.com/

See also: #PFP, #Yuga Labs

Bear Market

A general and sustained downward trend of cryptocurrency and NFT prices, as well as market sentiment.

See also: #Bearish, #Bull Market

Bearish

Slang

Indicates a lack of conviction regarding a market, industry, project, or even individual item. A pessimistic outlook.

See also: #Bear Market, #Bullish

Bid

An offer made by a potential buyer during an auction. The programmable nature of cryptocurrencies and NFTs allows for automation of this process if the proper APIs or other tools are available on the auction platform.

Bitcoin

An open-sourced, cryptographically secured, decentralized, peer-to-peer digital currency released in 2009 by a pseudonymous entity known only as Satoshi Nakamoto. The blockchain and network is always capitalized (“Bitcoin”), while the cryptocurrency is not (“bitcoin”). Bitcoins may be subdivided to eight decimal places, with the smallest unit known as a satoshi - 1 BTC = 100,000,000 satoshis.

The Bitcoin network is secured and transactions are validated through a Proof of Work system by miners around the globe, and as such, is not controlled by any individual, government, or organization. Miners are incentivized with rewards in the form of newly created bitcoins and transaction fees submitted by users.

The Bitcoin whitepaper: https://bitcoin.org/bitcoin.pdf

More info can be found at https://en.bitcoin.it/wiki/Bitcoin

BitLicense

Block

https://www.dfs.ny.gov/virtual_currency_businesses

Block Explorer

See also: #Blockchain, #Blockchain Explorer, #Block Reward, #Mining

Block Height

See also: #Block, #Blockchain

Block Reward

See also: #Block, #Blockchain

Blockchain

See also: #Blockchain, #Mining

Blockchain Explorer

See also: #Block, #Block Explorer

Blockchain Trilemma

See also: #Blockchain, #Block Height

Blue Chip

See also: #Blockchain

BNB Smart Chain

See also: #NFT

Bored Ape Yacht Club

See also: #Blockchain

Brain Wallet

See BAYC

Bridge

See also: #Cold Wallet, #Non-Custodial Wallet, #Wallet

BTC

See also: #Blockchain

Bug Bounty

Ticker Symbol -

See also: #Bitcoin, #Bitcoins, #Exchange

Buidl

Bull Market

Slang

Bullish

Burn

Slang

See also: #Bull Market

Byzantine Fault Tolerance

See also: #Blockchain

Byzantine Generals Problem

See also: #Byzantine Generals Problem

Byzantium Fork

See also: #Byzantine fault tolerance

C

Cancel Transactions

See also: #Replacement Transaction, #Stuck Transactions

CC0

Acronym -

CeFi

Abbreviation -

See also: #DeFi

Censorship

Centralized

See also: #Centralized Exchange

Centralized Exchange

See also: #Centralized, #Decentralized Exchange

CEX

Acronym -

Client

Coin

See also: #Cryptocurrency, #Token, #Tokenomics

Cold Wallet

See also: #Brain Wallet, #Hardware Wallet, #Wallet, #Wallet Address

Collateral

Confirmed Transaction

See also: #Pending Transaction, #Transaction, #Transaction Fee, #Transaction Hash, #Transaction Pool

Consensus

See also: #Consensus Mechanism, #Node

Consensus Mechanism

See also: #Consensus, #Node

ConsenSys

See also: #MetaMask

Constantinople fork

See also: #Ethereum

Contract

See also: #Smart Contract

Cross-Chain

See also: #Bridge

Crypto

Abbreviation -

See also: #Cryptocurrency, #Cryptography

Cryptocurrency

See also: #Coin, #Token

Cryptographic signature

See also: #Cryptography

Cryptography

See also: #Crypto

CryptoKitties

See also: #Ethereum, #NFT, #NFT Marketplace

CryptoPunks

See also: #Blue Chip, #Ethereum, #NFT

Custodial Wallet

See also: #Non-Custodial Wallet, #Wallet

D

DAI

Ticker Symbol -

DAO

Acronym -

See also: #Decentralized

Dapp

Abbreviation -

See also: #Decentralized, #AppChain

Decentralized

Decentralized Exchange

See also: #DeFi, #DEX

DeFi

Abbreviation -

See also: #Decentralized, #DEX, #Degen

Degen

Slang

See also: #DeFi

DEX

Acronym - Decentralized Exchange

Diamond Hands

Slang

See also: #Degen, #Paper Hands

Difficulty

See also: #Block, #Blockchain, #Blockchain Trilemma, #Proof of Work

Difficulty Bomb

See also: #Difficulty

Digital Identity

Digital Signature

See also: #Cryptographic signature, #Cryptography

Discord

Distributed Ledger

See also: #Blockchain

Double Spend

See also: #51% Attack

Dropped Transaction

See also: #Confirmed Transaction, #Failed Transaction, #Pending Transaction, #Stuck Transactions, #Transaction, #Transaction Fee, #Transaction Hash

Due Diligence

See also: #DYOR, #NFA, #Rug/Rug pull

DYOR

Acronym -

See also: #Due Diligence, #NFA, #Rug/Rug pull

E

EIP

Acronym -

See also: #Ethereum

EIP-1559

See also: #EIP

ENS

Acronym -

See also: #Address, #Ethereum, #Public Address

EOA Transaction

See also: #Ethereum, #Internal transaction

Epoch

See also: #Block, #Blockchain

ERC

Acronym -

See also: #Ethereum, #ERC-1155, #ERC-20, #ERC-721

ERC-1155

See also: #Ethereum, #ERC-20, #ERC-721

ERC-20

See also: #Ethereum, #ERC-1155, #ERC-721

ERC-721

See also: #Ethereum, #ERC-1155, #ERC-20

Escrow

ETH

Ticker Symbol -

See also: #Ethereum

Ethereum

Etherscan

See also: #Block Explorer, #Ethereum, #Gas, #Transaction, #Transaction Hash

EVM

Acronym -

See also: #Ethereum, #Node, #Smart Contract

Exchange

See also: #CeFi, #DeFi

F

Failed Transaction

See also: #Confirmed Transaction, #Dropped Transaction, #Internal transaction, #Pending Transaction, #Stuck Transactions, #Transaction, #Transaction Fee

Fantom

Faucet

See also: #Testnet

Fiat

Flippening

Slang

See also: #Bitcoin, #Ethereum

FOMO

Acronym -

See also: #Degen

Fork

See also: #Hard Fork, #Soft Fork

Fractionalize

Frens

Slang

Front-running

FUD

Acronym -

Full Node

See also: #Archival Nodes, #Light Node, #Master Node, #Node

Fungible

See also: #Fungible Token, #NFT, #Semi-fungible

Fungible Token

See also: #Fungible, #NFT, #Semi-fungible

G

GameFi

Abbreviation -

See also: #CeFi, #DeFi

Gas

See also: #Ethereum, #Gas Fees, #Transaction Fee

Gas Estimator

See also: #Gas, #Gas Fees

Gas Fees

See also: #Gas, #Gas Estimator, #Gas Limit, #Gas Price, #Max Fee Per Gas, #Transaction Fee

Gas Limit

See also: #Gas Fees

Gas Price

See also: #Gas Fees

Generative Art

See also: #NFT, #NFT Marketplace

Genesis Block

See also: #Block, #Blockchain, #Block Explorer

GM

Acronym -

GMI

Acronym -

See also: #NGMI, #WAGMI

Gnosis

See also: #Ethereum, #Layer 2

Goerli

See also: #Ethereum, #Testnet, #Mainnet

Gwei

See also: #Ethereum, #Gas Fees, #Wei

H

Hackathon

Halving

Hard Fork

See also: #Fork, #Soft Fork

Hardware Wallet

See also: #Cold Wallet, #Non-Custodial Wallet, #Wallet, #Wallet Address

Hash

See also: #Transaction Hash

Hash Rate

See also: #Mining

Hashing

See also: #Hash

HD Wallet

Abbreviation -

See also: #Wallet

Hexadecimal

Hierarchical Deterministic wallet

HODL

Slang

See also: #Diamond Hands

Holding a bag

See also: #Degen, #Diamond Hands, #FOMO, #FUD, #Paper Hands

Hot Wallet

See also: #Cold Wallet, #Non-Custodial Wallet, #Wallet

Hyperledger

See also: #Blockchain, #Consensus Mechanism

I

ICO

Acronym -

See also: #Coin, #DeFi

IDO

Acronym -

See also: #Decentralized Exchange, #DeFi

IEO

Acronym -

See also: #Exchange, #DeFi

Immutability

Infura

See also: #ConsenSys

Internal transaction

See also: #Ethereum, #Etherscan, #NFT Marketplace, #Smart Contract, #Transaction

InterPlanetary File System

'See #IPFS

IP

Acronym -

IPFS

Acronym -

K

Key

See also: #Private Key, #Public Key, #Public Key Encryption

Know Your Customer

See KYC

KYC

Acronym -

See also: #AML

L

L1

Abbreviation -

L2

Abbreviation -

Lambo

Slang

Lamport

See also: #SOL, #Solana

Layer 1

See also: #AppChain, #Blockchain, #Layer 2, #Sidechain

Layer 2

See also: #AppChain, #Blockchain, #Layer 1, #Sidechain

Light Client

See also: #Client

Light Node

See also: #Node, #Full Node

Liquidations

Liquidity

See also: #Liquidity Pool, #Liquidity Provider

Liquidity Pool

See also: #Liquidity, #Liquidity Provider

Liquidity Provider

See also: #Liquidity, #Liquidity Pool

Locking

See also: #Staking, #Total Value Locked, #TVL

Loop Ring

See also: #Ethereum, #Layer 2

M

Mainnet

See also: #Testnet

Market Cap

Master Node

See also: #Node

Max Fee Per Gas

See also: #Gas Fees, #Transaction Fee

Max Priority Fee

See also: #Gas Fees, #Transaction Fee

Maxi

Slang

Maximal Extractable Value

See also: #Maximal Extractable Value, #MEV

Mempool

See also: #Mempool Explorer

Mempool Explorer

See also: #Mempool

Merge, The

See also: #Ethereum, #Proof of Stake, #Proof of Stake

Merkle Patricia Trie

See also: #Merkle Tree

Merkle Root

See also: #Merkle Tree

Merkle Tree

See also: #Merkle Patricia Trie

Merkle Trie

Mesh

MetaMask

See also: #ConsenSys

Metaverse

MEV

Acronym -

Miner Extractable Value

Mining

See also: #Proof of Work

Mint/Minting

See also: #NFT

Mnemonic Phrase

See also: #Brain Wallet, #Wallet

Modular Blockchain

See also: #Blockchain, #Monolithic Blockchain

Monolithic Blockchain

See also: #Blockchain, #Modular Blockchain

Moon

Slang

Multi-Sig Wallet

See also: #Wallet

N

New York BitLicense

NFA

Acronym -

See also: #Due Diligence, #DYOR

NFT

Acronym -

See also: #Non-fungible, #Semi-fungible

NFT Aggregator

See also: #NFT, #NFT Marketplace

NFT Marketplace

See also: #NFT, #NFT Aggregator

NGMI

Acronym -

See also: #GMI, #WAGMI

Nocoiner

Slang

Node

See also: #Archival Nodes, #Full Node, #Light Node, #Master Node

Non-Custodial Wallet

See also: #Custodial Wallet, #Wallet

Non-fungible

See also: #Fungible, #NFT, #Semi-fungible

Nonce

O

Off-Chain

See also: #Blockchain, #On-Chain

On-Chain

See also: #Blockchain, #Off-Chain

On-Ramp/Off-Ramp

See also: #Exchange

Optimism

See also: #Ethereum, #Layer 2

Optimistic Rollups

See also: #Optimism

Oracle

Orphan Block

See also: #Block, #Stale Block

P

P2E

Acronym -

P2P

Acronym -

Paper Hands

Slang

See also: #Ape, #Diamond Hands, #FOMO

Peer-To-Peer

Pending Transaction

See also: #Speed Up Transactions, #Stuck Transactions, #Transaction

PFP

Acronym -

See also: #NFT

PoA

Acronym -

PoAP

Acronym -

PoH

Acronym -

Polygon

See also: #Ethereum, #Layer 2

PoS

Acronym -

PoW

Acronym -

Private Blockchain

See also: #Blockchain

Private Key

See also: #Cryptographic signature, #Cryptography, #Public Key, #Public Key Encryption

Proof of Attendance Protocol

Proof of Authority

See also: #Proof of History, #Proof of Stake, #Proof of Work

Proof of History

See also: #Proof of Authority, #Proof of Stake, #Proof of Work

Proof of Stake

See also: #Proof of Authority, #Proof of History, #Proof of Work

Proof of Work

See also: #Proof of Authority, #Proof of History, #Proof of Stake

Protocol

Public Address

See also: #Address, #Cryptographic signature, #Cryptography, #Public Key, #Public Key Encryption, #Private Key

Public Key

See also: #Address, #Cryptographic signature, #Cryptography, #Public Address, #Public Key Encryption, #Private Key

Public Key Encryption

See also: #Address, #Cryptographic signature, #Cryptography, #Public Address, #Public Key, #Private Key

Pump and Dump

See also: #FOMO, #Rekt, #Rug/Rug Pull

R

Rekt

Slang

See also: #Rug/Rug Pull

Replacement Transaction

See also: #Cancel Transactions, #Pending Transaction, #Speed Up Transactions, #Stuck Transactions, #Transaction, #Transaction Fee

Rinkeby

See also: #Ethereum, #Proof of Authority, #Testnet

Rollup

See also: #Arbitrum, #Optimism, #Optimistic Rollups, [[#ZK-Rollup

]]

Ropsten

See also: #Ethereum, #Testnet

Rug/Rug Pull

Slang

See also: #Pump and Dump, #Rekt

S

Satoshi Nakamoto

See also: #Bitcoin, #Blockchain

Satoshis

See also: #Bitcoin, #Bitcoins, #Satoshi Nakamoto

Secret Recovery Phrase

See also: #Private Key, #Seed Phrase

Seed Phrase

See also: #Private Key, #Secret Recovery Phrase

Semi-fungible

See also: #Fungible, #Non-fungible, #NFT

Ser

Slang

SHA

Acronym -

See also: #Bitcoin, #Hashing, #Mining

SHA-256

See also: #SHA

Sharding

Shill

Shitcoin

See also: #Altcoin

Sidechain

See also: #AppChain, #Blockchain, #Layer 1, #Layer 2

Slashing

Slippage

See also: #Liquidity Pool

Smart Contract

See also: #Smart Contract Wallet

Smart Contract Wallet

See also: #Smart Contract

Sock Puppet

Slang

See also: #Alts

Soft Fork

See also: #Fork, #Hard Fork

SOL

Ticker Symbol -

See also: #Solana

Solana

See also: #Lamport, #SOL

Solidity

See also: #Ethereum, #Smart Contract

Speed Up Transactions

See also: #Cancel Transactions, #Failed Transaction, #Pending Transaction, #Replacement Transaction, #Stuck Transactions, #Transaction, #Transaction Fee

SPL

Acronym -

See also: #Solana

Stablecoin

See also: #Coin, #Cryptocurrency, #DeFi

Staking

See also: #DeFi, #Locking, #TVL, #Total Value Locked

Stale Block

See also: #Block, #Orphan Block

Stuck Transactions

See also: #Cancel Transactions, #Failed Transaction, #Pending Transaction, #Replacement Transaction, #Speed Up Transactions, #Transaction, #Transaction Fee

Subnet

See also: #Avalanche

SushiSwap

See also: #DeFi, #Decentralized Exchange, #Swap, #Uniswap

Swap

See also: #DeFi, #Decentralized Exchange, #SushiSwap, #Uniswap

T

Testnet

See also: #Faucet, #Mainnet

Ticker Symbol

A unique combination of letters representing assets, stock, or cryptocurrencies on various exchanges. Often limited to three letters, but may be longer.

Token

See also: #Coin, #Cryptocurrency, #NFT, #Tokenomics, #Wrapped Token

Tokenomics

See also: #Token

Total Value Locked

TPS

Acronym -

Transaction

See also: #Block Explorer, #Transaction Fee, #Transaction Hash, #Transaction Pool

Transaction Fee

See also: #Gas, #Gas Estimator, #Gas Fees, #Gas Limit, #Gas Price, #Max Fee Per Gas

Transaction Hash

See also: #Block Explorer, #Transaction, #Transaction Fee, #Transaction Pool

Transaction Pool

See also: #Block Explorer, #Transaction, #Transaction Fee, #Transaction Hash

Trilemma

See #Blockchain Trilemma

TVL

Acronym -

Txn

Abbreviation -

U

Uniswap

See also: #DeFi, #Decentralized Exchange, #Swap, #SushiSwap

Up Only

Slang

Utility

See also: #NFT

UX

Acronym -

V

Validator

See also: #Full Node, #Master Node, #Node

Vaporware

Slang

VR

Acronym -

W

WAGMI

Acronym -

Wallet

See also: #Brain Wallet, #Cold Wallet, #Custodial Wallet, #Hardware Wallet, #HD Wallet, #Hot Wallet, #Multi-Sig Wallet, #Smart Contract Wallet, #Wallet Address

Wallet Address

See also: #Wallet

Web1

See also: #Web2, #Web3

Web2

See also: #Web1, #Web3

Web3

See also: #Web1, #Web2, #Web3 Domains

Web3 Domains

Slang

See also: #Web3

Wei

See also: #Ethereum, #Gas, #Gwei

Wen

Slang

WETH

Ticker Symbol -

See also: #Wrapped Ethereum, #Wrapped Token

Whale

Whitelist

Deprecated. See Allowlist

Wrapped Ethereum

See also: #Ethereum, #Wrapped Token

Wrapped Token

See also: #Ethereum, #Wrapped Ethereum

X

xDAI Chain

See also: #Blockchain, #DAI

Y

Yuga Labs

See also: #BAYC

Z

Zero-Knowledge Proof

ZK-Rollup

See also: #Ethereum, #Rollup, #Zero-Knowledge Proof

zk-SNARK

Abbreviation -

See also: #Zero-Knowledge Proof

zkSync

See also: #Zero-Knowledge Proof

ZRX

Ticker Symbol -

See also: #0x