What is Cryptocurrency? (And Other Crypto Terms You Should Know)
From “lambo” to “sats,” the language of cryptocurrency is endlessly creative and evolving. We’ve put together a glossary of the most popular, essential, and amusing jargon, terms, shorthands, and slang.
- A better understanding of the most commonly used and essential crypto terms
- Examples of how to use the terms in their proper context
- Pronunciation tips for acronyms and other confusing terms
- An answer ready for the next time your friends and colleagues ask, “what is cryptocurrency again?”
– A –
Airdrop
A distribution of free tokens to wallet holders, often used to promote a new project or reward early users.
I received an airdrop and decided to donate some of the tokens to charity.
Altcoin
Term to describe any and all cryptocurrencies excluding Bitcoin.
She invested in about a dozen altcoins including Litecoin and Dogecoin, with the hope that one or more would outperform Bitcoin over the long haul.
ATH
Acronym for “all time high;” the highest value ever achieved by a cryptocurrency.
Q: Did you see that Litecoin’s new ATH is over $410 USD?
A: Seriously? I never thought it would break $350, its last ATH!
ATL
Acronym for “all time low;” the lowest value ever achieved by a cryptocurrency.
He wants the best return on investment, so he’s waiting until Stellar gets within ten cents of its ATL before buying any.
Autoconversion
Automated process of converting cryptocurrency to fiat (such as US Dollars) upon receipt. Many modern donation platforms support instant autoconversion across multiple cryptocurrencies, helping nonprofits reduce exposure to price volatility and simplify accounting.
She made a USDC donation to a charity that automatically converted her gift to USD upon receipt.
– B –
Bag Season
The year-end crypto fundraising period that begins with Crypto Giving Tuesday and continues through December. This time of year is especially important for donors who want to maximize tax benefits by donating appreciated cryptocurrency before the end of the calendar year.
I plan my largest donations during Bag Season to take advantage of tax benefits and support my favorite causes.
Bitcoin (aka “BTC”)
The first cryptocurrency, created in 2008 by Satoshi Nakamoto. Cryptocurrency investors can donate bitcoin to nonprofits and lower their tax liability.
Many people would say that she was smart to buy Bitcoin before 2018 and not sell any, despite market fluctuations.
Blockchain
Digital ledger made up of chronologically-arranged blocks of information, used to record all transactions of a particular cryptocurrency.
As blockchain is more widely understood, its technology is likely to be used far beyond cryptocurrency.
– C –
Capital Gains
Profits made from the sale of an asset (e.g. a cryptocurrency holding).
Cryptocurrency investors can offset their capital gains taxes by donating crypto to charity.
Cryptocurrency
Digital currency that uses cryptography and blockchain to encrypt, secure, and verify transactions.
According to my neighbor, a software engineer, today’s cryptocurrency boom feels like the early days of the internet.
Cryptocurrency Donation Platform
A cryptocurrency donation platform enables nonprofits to accept charitable gifts in cryptocurrency such as Bitcoin.
Within weeks of integrating a cryptocurrency donation platform, we received more than $30,000 worth of donations.
Cryptocurrency Donations
Charitable gifts donated by cryptocurrency investors.
Cryptocurrency donations are a great way to offset capital gains taxes while supporting a great cause.
Cryptocurrency Giving Pledge
The Cryptocurrency Giving Pledge challenges the crypto community to donate 1% of their crypto each year to nonprofits; individuals and businesses can take the pledge.
I’m helping to make crypto the most generous industry in the world by taking the Crypto Giving Pledge!
Crypto Adoption Fund
A crypto donation fund created by The Giving Block. The total value of the fund’s received crypto donations will be evenly distributed to TGB’s nonprofit clients.
I couldn’t decide which organization to support, so my crypto donation will go towards the Crypto Adoption Fund, which helps encourage nonprofit crypto adoption.
The Crypto Giving Pledge
A commitment started by The Giving Block that anyone can take who would like to donate 1% of their crypto each year to a nonprofit or charitable organization.
I took the Crypto Giving Pledge, even though I make anonymous donations.
Crypto Giving Tuesday
An annual global day of giving focused on cryptocurrency donations, held on the same day as Giving Tuesday. Created to encourage crypto philanthropy, it has grown alongside broader adoption of digital assets and continues to attract donors looking to give before year-end for tax benefits.
Q: I missed Crypto Giving Tuesday, is it too late to donate?
A: Not at all, many donors continue giving throughout the year-end season.
Crypto Philanthropy
All-encompassing term for the cryptocurrency fundraising ecosystem, including its donors, nonprofits/charities, and giving methods.
After their nonprofit had a challenging fiscal year, the development team planned to diversify giving streams by entering the crypto philanthropy space.
Custodial Wallet
A cryptocurrency wallet managed by a third party, such as an exchange, where the provider controls the private keys.
I keep my crypto on a custodial wallet like Coinbase for convenience.
– D –
Decentralized Application (Dapp)
An application that runs on a blockchain or peer-to-peer network rather than on a single computer, operating autonomously through smart contracts.
I’m interested in trying a dapp but I need to get a wallet and some crypto first.
Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAO)
A business structure that uses tokens and smart contracts to make collective decisions. Members use their blockchain tokens as votes and the entire organization is decentralized, meaning control is given to everyone instead of a traditional hierarchy.
I’m a token holder and voted today on the direction of a new project my DAO is taking on.
Decentralized Exchange (DEX)
A cryptocurrency exchange that allows peer-to-peer transactions without any intermediary.
I don’t always use Coinbase to buy crypto, sometimes I use a DEX like Uniswap.
Donor-Advised Fund (DAF)
A charitable giving account that allows donors to contribute assets, including cryptocurrency, receive an immediate tax deduction, and recommend grants to nonprofits over time.
I donated crypto to my donor-advised fund and plan to distribute it to charities throughout the year.
– E –
EOY
Acronym for “End of Year,” which refers to The Giving Block’s End-of-Year fundraising campaign. Also referred to as the “Year-End Campaign.”
This fall our foundation began accepting crypto donations, just in time for our EOY campaign!
Ethereum
A decentralized blockchain with smart contract functionality, launched in 2015. Ethereum now operates on a Proof-of-Stake (PoS) consensus mechanism, making it significantly more energy-efficient than its original model.
Ethereum remains one of the most widely used blockchains for donations, NFTs, and decentralized applications.
Ethereum Gas Fee
The fee required to conduct a transaction on the Ethereum blockchain, based on network demand and computational complexity. To reduce costs and improve speed, many users now transact on Layer 2 networks built on Ethereum, such as Arbitrum, Optimism, and Base.
I wanted to send a donation, so I used a Layer 2 network to avoid high Ethereum gas fees.
Exchange
Online service that enables its users to buy or sell cryptocurrencies.
The “best” crypto exchange is the one that best matches your specific needs for security, supported currencies, withdrawal options, and pricing.
– F –
FOMO
Acronym for “Fear of Missing Out;” a feeling of urgency or anxiety that leads individuals to take action, such as buying or donating, based on the fear that they might miss an opportunity.
After seeing crypto prices rise and others making donations during year-end campaigns, he felt FOMO and decided to contribute before the deadline.
Fork
A change to the rules or protocol of a blockchain as its developers make updates. Forks are either a hard fork (the blockchain splits into two separate networks, resulting in different blocks and transactions in the future) or a soft fork (a backward-compatible upgrade that does not result in a split).
Luckily the upgrade didn’t make that much of an impact, it was a soft fork.
FUD
Acronym for “Fear, uncertainty, and doubt;”
They keep telling us to sell our Ether for cash, but they don’t understand crypto, they have FUD!
Fungible
A commodity that is interchangeable. Its individual units are not unique from each other.
Cash and gold are fungible.
– G –
Genesis Block
The very first block in a cryptocurrency blockchain.
The genesis block that Satoshi Nakamoto created for Bitcoin is often referred to as “Block 0.”
Giving Tuesday
An annual global day of generosity, scheduled for the Tuesday after Thanksgiving in the U.S. Started in 2012, #GivingTuesday is now the biggest day in global charitable giving.
Q: When is Giving Tuesday this year?
A: The same day as Crypto Giving Tuesday!
GM
Acronym for “good morning.” A positive affirmation and expression of solidarity posted on social media and online chat forums geared toward one’s fellow crypto users, investors and enthusiasts.
GM, everyone!
– H –
HODL
Slang term for “holding” onto a cryptocurrency rather than selling it. Derived from a misspelling of “hold.”
When the value of my favorite altcoin plummeted, I decided to hodl and it was the best decision of my life: now the value is double what I bought it for!
– I –
ICO
Acronym for “Initial Coin Offering;” an early method of fundraising for cryptocurrency projects in which investors purchased tokens before launch. ICOs have largely been replaced by newer models such as token generation events (TGEs) and airdrops due to evolving regulations.
The project chose a token generation event instead of an ICO to align with current regulatory standards.
– J –
JOMO
Acronym for “Joy of missing out;” often uttered after a crypto’s price drop by a trader who is glad to have not taken a certain position.
(Pronunciation: “Joe-Moe”)
Everyone told me to invest in Ethereum, but then its price dropped by 20% the next day. I guess I have a case of JOMO!
– K –
KYC
Acronym for “Know your customer;” refers to a set of standards used to verify the identities of customers.
Exchanges will likely adopt more thorough KYC practices as regulations continue to develop for the crypto industry.
– L –
Lambo
Abbreviation for “Lamborghini,” a luxury Italian brand of sports car; term used to ask when a coin will be valuable enough for its investors to afford a Lamborghini.
“We just launched our token yesterday!”
“That’s great, but… When Lambo?”
Layer 2 (L2)
A secondary network built on top of a blockchain like Ethereum that improves transaction speed and reduces costs. Popular Layer 2 networks include Arbitrum, Optimism, and Base.
I made my donation on a Layer 2 network so the transaction fee was only a few cents.
– L –
Laser Eyes
A meme in which a photo is altered so that the subject’s eyes appear to glow red; often seen in profile pictures of Bitcoin supporters who want the cryptocurrency’s value to climb to $100,000.
I didn’t realize how mainstream Bitcoin was until I saw all the celebrities with laser eyes in their Twitter profile pictures–I might go buy some!
– M –
Market Capitalization
The total value of all of a cryptocurrency’s tokens, not only a single token.
When Bitcoin’s market capitalization hit $1T, my uncle finally admitted that crypto wasn’t a fad.
Metaverse
A virtual, shared digital environment where users can interact, socialize, and transact. While the concept gained significant attention in the early 2020s, development has been more gradual, and the metaverse is now considered one of several emerging areas within the broader Web3 ecosystem.
Some nonprofits have experimented with hosting virtual fundraising events in metaverse platforms.
Mining
The process of validating transactions and adding them to a blockchain in exchange for newly created cryptocurrency. Mining is primarily used in Proof-of-Work systems like Bitcoin, while many newer blockchains use alternative methods such as Proof-of-Stake, which do not require mining.
Bitcoin relies on mining, but Ethereum no longer uses this process.
Minting
The process of turning digital files into cryptocurrency or an NFT.
After finishing the artwork file, I successfully minted my first NFT this week.
Moon
A sudden increase in the value of a cryptocurrency.
“Check out the exchanges today, Ravencoin is mooning!”
Multi-Chain
Refers to using or supporting multiple blockchain networks rather than relying on a single one.
The nonprofit accepts donations across multiple chains to make giving easier for donors.
– N –
Non-Custodial Wallet
A wallet where the user has full control over their private keys and assets.
I moved my funds to a non-custodial wallet for greater control and security.
Non-fungible token (aka “NFT”)
A unique digital asset stored on a blockchain that represents ownership of a specific item or piece of content. While NFTs initially gained popularity through digital art, they are now used for a variety of purposes, including event tickets, memberships, and fundraising initiatives.
A nonprofit issued NFTs that grant donors access to exclusive events and community updates.
NFT Donation
A donation given to charity, often in the form of proceeds from an NFT auction. As NFTs have gone mainstream, more and more creators and philanthropists have taken interest in donating NFTs to nonprofits.
An artist that I manage wants to raise money for disabled veterans by auctioning off an NFT, and giving the proceeds directly to a charity.
Nocoiner
Person who does not own any cryptocurrency.
By 2050, crypto will be so mainstream that nocoiners will become a rarity.
– O –
OG
Acronym for “Original Gangster” (a term borrowed from hip-hop culture); person involved since the early days of Bitcoin, altcoins, or cryptocurrency in general.
Q: How did she retire so early?
A: Oh, she’s an Ethereum OG and got in when its value was about $10 USD.
Onramp / Offramp
Services that allow users to convert traditional currency into cryptocurrency (onramp) or convert cryptocurrency back into fiat (offramp).
I used an onramp to buy crypto before making my first donation.
– P –
Paper Wallet
Physical copy of one’s private key.
To avoid any digital security breaches, the only place that my private key is written down is in a piece of paper that serves as my paper wallet.
Private Key
Encrypted, 256-bit number password needed to access a digital wallet and approve its transactions.
Q: How are you safely storing your private key?
A: I wrote it down on paper and stored it in a safe place!
Proof-of-Stake (PoS)
A consensus mechanism used by many modern blockchains, including Ethereum, to validate transactions and secure the network. Instead of mining, participants “stake” their cryptocurrency to help process transactions, making PoS more energy-efficient than Proof-of-Work.
Ethereum transitioned to Proof-of-Stake to reduce energy consumption and improve scalability.
Proof-of-Work (PoW)
The other method of validating blockchain transactions. In Proof-of-Work, computers complete complicated algorithms and in return miners are rewarded with tokens of cryptocurrency.
Bitcoin is well known for its adoption of Proof-of-Work to complete transactions.
Public Key
Unique wallet address that is used to accept cryptocurrencies.
The coffee shop posts a QR code for its wallet so that customers paying in crypto don’t need to copy and paste their public key.
– Q –
QR Code
Barcode shaped like a square; used in cryptocurrency to make a digital wallet address easily and quickly scannable for mobile wallets.
Q: Can I pay for this in crypto?
A: Sure, all you have to do is scan our QR code.
– R –
REKT
Originated from a misspelling of the word “wrecked;” refers to a person or coin that has suffered major financial loss.
Joe got rekt when every coin he’s hodling crashed on the same day.
– S –
SAFU
Originated from a viral video from the CEO of Binance that used a misspelling of the word “safe,” and now also refers to Secure Asset Fund for Users, an emergency insurance fund on the crypto exchange Binance.
I dreamed that I lost my private key, but when I woke up my funds were still safu.
Satoshi (SATS)
The smallest unit of bitcoin, 0.00000001 BTC
I can’t afford a whole BTC, but I got my hands on some sats!
Seed Phrase
A list of words which contains the information you need to access the cryptocurrency in your wallet. Think of it as: your wallet is a password manager, and your seed phrase is your master password.
I came up with my seed phrase and wrote it down, but now I’m trying to remember where I put that piece of paper.
Smart Contract
A blockchain protocol that can automatically execute certain actions when predefined conditions have been met, used to reduce the need for third-party involvement in crypto transactions.
After talking it over, we decided to keep banks and lawyers away from our agreement, and instead we agreed upon a series of terms that we put into a smart contract.
Stablecoin
A type of cryptocurrency designed to maintain a stable value, often pegged to a fiat currency like the U.S. dollar. Popular stablecoins such as USDC and USDT are widely used for donations due to their low volatility, fast transaction speeds, and ease of accounting.
Many donors choose to give in stablecoins to ensure their donation value remains consistent.
Staking
The process of locking up cryptocurrency to support a blockchain network and earn rewards over time. Many donors choose to give a portion of their staking rewards, creating a new stream of charitable contributions.
She regularly donates the rewards she earns from staking her crypto to support her favorite causes.
– T –
Tank
A considerable price drop of a cryptocurrency.
My biggest fear isn’t that Bitcoin will tank, it’s that it will get so valuable I can’t afford to keep buying more sats!
The Giving Block
The Giving Block (or “TGB” for short) makes Bitcoin and other cryptocurrency fundraising easy for nonprofits. The Giving Block empowers mission-driven organizations, charities, universities, and faith-based organizations of all sizes to leverage crypto technology to achieve their mission.
Our organization added crypto as a fundraising revenue stream when we partnered with The Giving Block.
Token
A “token” with a cryptocurrency that is built on-top of another cryptocurrency, and which can be exchanged.
BAT is a token on the Ethereum blockchain.
Tokenization
The process of representing real-world or digital assets on a blockchain as tokens.
Tokenization could allow nonprofits to create new types of fundraising assets in the future.
– U –
Unconfirmed
State of a transaction when it is yet to be appended to the blockchain.
A crypto transaction usually takes a few minutes before it goes from unconfirmed to confirmed.
– V –
Volatility
Measure of how often and how drastically the price of a cryptocurrency changes.
Volatility is a consideration for any investment, whether it’s in gold, or cryptocurrency, or stocks.
– W –
Weak Hands
Description of an investor that sold all or part of their holdings, often due to volatility-caused anxiety.
The coin only dropped by 10% and all of these weak hands are selling.
Web3
A term used to describe the next phase of the internet, focused on decentralization, digital ownership, and blockchain-based technologies. While still evolving, Web3 includes applications such as cryptocurrency payments, decentralized finance, and digital identity systems.
Many nonprofits are exploring Web3 tools to reach new donors and expand global giving.
Whale
Someone who owns large amounts of cryptocurrency.
Q: How much cryptocurrency do they own?
A: I’d guess millions. He’s a whale.
– X –
XBT
Alternate abbreviation of Bitcoin (BTC).
Some exchanges use XBT instead of BTC as the ticker.
– Z –
Zero Confirmation Transaction
Alternate term for an unconfirmed transaction on the blockchain.
If you try to double-spend a cryptocurrency, the transactions will probably show up as zero confirmation transactions.
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