The Unofficial Cryptocurrency Lingo Cheat Sheet

Have you ever caught yourself scratching your head over not understanding what the hell other crypto nerds are talking about while scrolling through Reddit, cryptocurrency related forums, or slack groups?

Well those days are over my friend! Today we start a whole new chapter in your life to help alleviate that eternal thirst for crypto knowledge! Excited? I know you are...

Print or bookmark this unofficial cryptocurrency lingo cheat sheet so that you no longer have to be left out in the dark.

Altcoin - any cryptocurrency that isn’t bitcoin. Yes, I do mean ANY!

Arbitrage - taking advantage of the different cryptocurrency prices, of the same coin, from one exchange to the other.

ASIC – stands for Application Specific Integrated Circuit. Specialized silicon chips which process SHA-256 algorithms in order to mind cryptocurrency and validate transactions.

ASIC Miners - the actual hardware which is used to house the ASIC silicon chip which is inherently connected to the Internet.

ATH – All Time High. When a cryptocurrency breaks its current record with regard to price.

Bagholder - someone holding onto an altcoin that has dropped in price, with the intent of holding onto it until it increases in price, to where they originally purchased at.

Bearish - an expectation of when the price is set to decrease.

Bullish - an expectation that price is going to increase.

Bitcoin – the mother of all cryptocurrency. The very first cryptocurrency that started it all.

Blockchain - blockchain’s are distributed online ledgers, that are secured by cryptography. Look at them like public databases that anyone can access and read, however the data can only be updated by the owners. Also note, the data is copied and resides across thousands of computers worldwide. For a more in depth explanation, check out: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blockchain

Exchange (trading) - websites where you can buy, sell, and trade cryptocurrency. Some of the more popular and established trading exchanges in the US are Coinbase, Binance, Bittrex, and Poloniex.

Fiat - currency issued by the government, like the US dollar.

Flippening – an event where a cryptocurrency (altcoin) surpasses bitcoin in market capitalization (yet to happen at time of writing). It has been stated on numerous occasions that at the rim may be the currency to cause this event.

FOMO – Fear of missing out. This is yet another term for greed, where you have the overwhelming emotional need to purchase a cryptocurrency when the price starts for has been skyrocketing.

Forging –the process in proof of stake blockchains where there is no block reward for crypto miners. Forgers however are able to keep transaction fees instead, as a reward.

Fork - this is where blockchain splits into another separate chain (AKA – splitting into 2 separate cryptocurrencies). These typically happen when new rules or updates to the blockchain’s code are built. More details here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blockchain#Hard_forks

FUD - Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt. Another negative based emotion spread intentionally by the media or a group of people within the crypto sphere that are typically looking to cause a price to drop, in hopes that they can purchase the cryptocurrency at a discount.

FUDster - anyone who is intentionally spreading FUD.

Genesis Block – the first block to be mined in a blockchain.

Going Long - a margin trade where you profit from the price increase

Going Short - a margin trade where you profit from the price decrease

Halving –rate at which the block reward creates a new Bitcoin.

Hard Fork – new blockchain software that is non-backwards compatible. This causes a cryptocurrency to split into 2 separate currencies.

HODL – slang for “hold your coins”. This was an un-intentional misspelling of the word “hold” which was used among the cryptocurrency community when encouraging traders to resist the urge to sell their holdings when market fluctuations were bearish.

ICO - stands for Initial Coin Offering. This is basically crowd funding for the crypto world. These startups issue their own proprietary token in exchange for your fiat investment. You’re hoping that the exchange will result in the tokens (altcoin) gaining value once the ICO has been released

Lightening Network - is a payment protocol which is operational on top of the blockchain which is capable of millions to billions of transactions per second across the entire network. Has been touted as one of the most potent solutions to the cryptocurrency scaling issue.

Ok...take a quick coffee break...

Limit Order (buy or sell) - these types of orders can be thought of as “for sale signs”. You request a specific buy or sell price to be met so that the exchange buys or sells the cryptocurrency at your requested price. The only issue with these types of orders are that the buy or sell price may never be met, thus leaving you with an unfilled order.

 

Market Orders (buy or sell) - this is the exact price that the current cryptocurrency is at right now. When you place a market buy or sell order, you’re getting that order filled immediately since you’re currently purchasing the currency at retail value.

Market Cap - the total value held within a cryptocurrency. This is calculated by multiplying the total supply of the currency by the current price. Coinmarketcap is where most crypto junkies check on the latest market caps.

Mining - the process of where a computer is trying to solve the next block in a blockchain via cryptography. This process requires an immense amount of computer processing power, but is rewarded with ether (other cryptocurrency).

Mining rig - a computer specifically designed to process blockchain’s (like BTC, ETH, NEO, OMG, etc). It often consists of multiple high-end graphic processors(GPU) in order to maximize its processing power.

Moon - optimistic term used when cryptocurrency is or about to increase in both price and volume. Used often within cryptocurrency communities.

Node - a single computer that possesses a copy of the blockchain and is working to maintain it.

OCD - Obsessive Cryptocurrency Disorder. For those who can’t stop monitoring their cryptocurrency daily.

Paper wallet - cryptocurrency wallet public and private keys held on a piece of paper. I recommend storing these in an extremely safe place.

POW - proof of work. The current algorithm utilized by cryptocurrency.

Private key – a private number that allows you to open your cryptocurrency wallet. Without this key, you’re screwed, so keep it in a safe place.

Proof of work - a requirement defined by an expensive computer calculation called mining. It is very easy for others to verify however is very difficult and time-consuming to produce.

Proof of stake - the creator of a new block within a blockchain, which is determined on his/her wealth (how many coins they hold) and also defined as a stake.

Public key - typically referred to as a Bitcoin or crypto address, this is a string of numbers and letters that you need in order to send or receive cryptocurrency from an exchange or wallet.

Pump and Dump - this is typically when an altcoin gets a ton of attention leading to a very quick price increase, then followed by a massive crash. These can be both coordinated and uncoordinated. Beware of pump and dump groups.

ROI – Return on investment. How much money you have made compared to your initial investment (net profit). Example: an ROI of 100% means that you just doubled your money.

Satoshi Nakamoto – the anonymous creator of Bitcoin.

Sell Wall/Buy Wall - when looking at an exchanges order book, and then “depth chart” tab, you’ll find a graphical representation of what current buy and sell orders are.

Walls are graphical representations of a very large order that is waiting to be filled. Here is an image of a “depth chart”. Notice the “walls” where large orders are waiting to be filled.

Sharding - a solution for scaling blockchains. Every node within a blockchain utilizes a complete copy of the blockchain. Sharding allows nodes to include partial copies of the entire blockchain in order to effectively increase the overall network performance and speed.

Shilling (AKA – pumping) – someone purposely and overtly advertising a cryptocurrency coin for their own personal gain because they have currently invested in it.

Silk Road - the first modern day, underground marketplace where goods such as firearms, drugs, and other illegal items were bought and sold. It was later shut down by the FBI who auctioned off the confiscated Bitcoins.

Smart contracts - applications that run without any sort of external influence.

Soft fork - you cryptocurrency that is backwards compatible so that the currency doesn’t split (the splits are often known as a hard fork).

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