Application Programmer Interface. A type of toolkit provided for developers for creating applications.

A famous advocate of Bitcoin who has given speeches and presentations about Bitcoin all over the world.

The exchange of one coin or token for another coin or token that takes place without the need for a third party. Atomic Swaps rely on smart contracts to ensure both parties hold up their end of the agreement.

An event in which individuals that hold existing cryptocurrencies (like Bitcoin and Ethereum) are given tokens of a new cryptocurrency.

Wealthy individuals who contribute significant funds (usually over $1,000,000) to emerging projects.

The practice of buying and selling the same coins on different exchanges at the same time to take advantage of price differences.

A term used to describe coins that do not require expensive equipment for mining. If a coin is ASIC-resistant, its mining is thought to be more fair and decentralized than coins that are not ASIC-resistant.

Bitcoin Improvement Protocol. New feature proposed for Bitcoin are BIPs.

The amount of money one has available to him/her.

A mechanism that destroys an amount of coins or tokens, thereby decreasing the total coin supply of a cryptocurrency. 

A tool used to identify moments when an asset's price is relatively high or relatively low to inform trading decisions.

The original Bitcoin wallet, considered to be among the safest wallets available.

Pessimistic about the future of a cryptocurrency’s price.

Backtesting is the method of running your trading strategy on historical data to find out how well it would have performed.

The amount of data that can be stored in one block of a given blockchain. For example, the Block Size limit of Bitcoin is 1MB. Larger block size allows for more transactions per block. Thus, it’s not that transactions are “faster” or “slower”. It’s that transactions may be seemingly faster because the network is handling more transactions at a time.

A forum of myriad boards where enthusiasts and experts alike can go to discuss various cryptocurrency related topics.

A term used to describe cryptocurrency projects that facilitate programmable transactions rather than simply acting as methods to store and transfer value. Projects like Ethereum are known as Blockchain 2.0 contracts because they allow their users to create and execute smart contracts and develop decentralized apps.

Someone who uses Bitcoin regularly or is heavily involved in its technology.

The unofficial website of Bitcoin Core.

The time it takes to mine a new block.

A short rise in a cryptocurrency’s price that makes investors think the price will continue to rise. Instead, the price falls significantly following the rise, fooling the “bulls.”  

An individual who believes that increasing Bitcoin’s block size would improve its scalability. Roger Ver is the most notable Big Blocker.

BNB (Binance Coin) is an ERC20 token that lives on the Ethereum blockchain. The token has multiple forms of utility, essentially being the underlying gas that powers the Binance Ecosystem. Most important, it can be used to pay for trading fees on the exchange, obtaining the equivalent of a 50% discount on trades during the first year, 25% during the second year and so on.

A digital, distributed ledger which contains data for all the transactions that have ever taken place using a given cryptocurrency.

The first blockchain-based peer-to-peer protocol that allows its users to store and transfer wealth.

The payment given to a miner for securing a blockchain that uses POW (Proof-of-Work) consensus

The total number of blocks on a blockchain since the genesis block (first block) was mined.

A new version of the Bitcoin Protocol devloped using the Javascript programming language.

A condition that affects cryptocurrencies when the data stored reaches very large sizes due to increasing numbers of users and transactions. When blockchain bloat gets severe, transaction speed suffers.

A general agreement among participants using and mining a cryptocurrency.

Advocates of using strong encryption to evade government spying. Cypherpunks were heavily involved in the early development of Bitcoin.

A paper written by Eric Huges that outlines Cypherpunks’ philosophy and vision. This Manifesto was a big influence on many early cryptocurrency enthusiasts.

A method of encoding inputs to create unique outputs, especially for creating digital fingerprints.

No longer in production, these were physical coins created by Mike Caldwell that have private Bitcoin keys.

The usage of remote servers (rather than personal computers) to store, manage, and process data.

A cryptocurrency that relies solely on its own technology to function.

Digital currency that uses cryptography. Bitcoin & Altcoins are all types of cryptocurrency. 

Code making, breaking and studying.

The first exchange that allowed individuals to buy and sell cryptocurrencies.

An offline wallet for holding cryptocurrencies. Considered more secure than hot wallets.

Distributed amongst its users rather than controlled by one group or within one certain area.

An application created to run on a user's PC.

Distributed Denial of Service Attack. A means by which a malicious individual shuts down another individual's internet connection by overloading it with requests.

Distributed Denial of Service. A means by which a malicious individual shuts down another individual's internet connection by overloading it with requests.

A network that requires special software (like TOR) to access. Websites on the Darknet are much more difficult to shut down than normal websites. The Darknet was one of the first communities to use cryptocurrencies for transactions.

The act of selling cryptocurrency.

Distributed Apps. Applications without centralized control.

The limiting or decreasing of a cryptocurrency's supply, which usually drives its price up.

Directed Acyclic Graphs. Also referred to as “Tangle.” DAG is an alternative to the “chain of blocks” architecture used in many crypto projects.

An over/under guessing game that uses random number generators to output results, allowing individuals to bet using cryptocurrencies.

A cryptocurrency that uses the “Doge” meme with a cult-like following.

A tax on cryptocurrency holdings that encourages spending coins because they are constantly being destroyed.

DPoS. A consensus mechanism that has a blockchain's nodes vote on the correct version of the blockchain. 

DAA. A collection or portfolio of assorted cryptocurrencies. For example, one Digital Asset Array could contain BTC, ETH, and DASH.

Software for storing cryptocurrency that offers decreased risk of losing funds because of its ability to generate unlimited addresses from a single starting point, or "seed."

A feature which allows KyberNetwork to maintain high levels of liquidity. The DRP keeps reserves of cryptocurrencies and establishes rates of exchange between them, allowing any user to easily trade one crypto for another.

A unique, encrypted output that cannot be duplicated. Useful for creating digital identities and confirming authenticity.

A set of data used to represent an entity on a network or on the Internet.

A cryptocurrency created by Vitalik Buterin that runs on Ether (ETH). Ethereum was the first blockchain-based technology to make smart contracts and decentralized applications possible.

A token issued on the Ethereum platform.

The native tokens of the Ethereum platform. Required in order to send transactions or execute smart contracts.

A third party used to facilitate transactions and increase security.

Exchange Traded Fund. A group of assets that can be bought or sold as a single asset.

Fear Uncertainty and Doubt. The emotional (rather than logical) belief that cryptocurrency prices will fall.

The idea that all units in a money supply are exactly equal. Fungibility is considered to be an essential aspect of effective currencies by many economists.

A change in a cryptocurrency’s software that makes it incompatible with the original version. For example, any block size increase in the Bitcoin protocol constitutes a hard fork.

The analysis of the economic and political factors that affect the intrinsic value of an asset

A hypothetical society in which no one is forced to do anything against their wishes and all actions are voluntary.

A change in the original code of a software.

Fear of Missing Out. Investors with FOMO buy cryptocurrency (emotionally rather than logically) for fear of missing out on profits.

A fee which must be paid to execute network transactions.

An open-source database for developers to create and share computer coding with a large community.

The process of intermittently decreasing the block reward given to cryptocurrency miners by 50%.

A consensus mechanism that employs both Proof of Stake and Proof of Work algorithms.

The act of protecting an asset from risk. A hedge can protect against losses or even offset against gains.

The power of a mining rig. Similar in concept to the Horse Power of a vehicle.

The maximum amount of money a cryptocurrency’s founders will accept while raising money in exchange for early coins on their platform.

First made popular in a post by a drunken Bitcoiner who advocated buying but not selling Bitcoin, it is now a meme to intentionally misspell “hold.” Hodlers see huge potential in the future of a cryptocurrency and don’t plan on selling anytime soon.

Initial Coin Offering. An event in which a cryptocurrency project “goes public,” selling early coins in exchange for funds.

The term used to refer to blockchains to describe the way in which blocks cannot be changed after they are recorded.  

Internal Revenue Service. A US tax collection agency that demands information from cryptocurrency exchanges for various reasons.

Invisible Internet Project. A network layer that facilitates anonymous, censorship-resistant communication between users.

The process of increasing a cryptocurrency's supply, which usually drives its price down.

A request for communication from one node to another node.

A feature of Komodo that offers its users private payments. Jumblr works by exchanging the cryptocurrency being used for payment and mixing it among other cryptos prior to the making an anonymous transaction.

An algorithm used to adjust mining difficulty so that all miners are given a fair chance at earning block rewards.

Software that records every button press of an individual’s keyboard. Often used to hack into accounts by recording passwords.

Borrowed money used to trade assets.

Purchasing a coin with the expectation to sell it at a higher price sometime in the future for a profit. Basically profiting from the rising price of an asset.

A network layer that functions on top of the Bitcoin blockchain and allows for a huge number of low-fee microtransactions.

A cryptocurrency meme, short for Lamborghinis. When investors' coins' prices go to the Moon, they can buy Lambos.

A cryptocurrency that is very popular on the Darknet because it is considered to be more anonymous than Bitcoin and similar coins.

The ability of machines and computers to integrate data and learn from it without being programmed to do so.

An individual that volunteers computing power to verify transactions on a blockchain in exchange for block rewards.

The process by which new coins are created as transactions on a network are verified.

A cryptocurrency exchange led by Mark Karpeles that allegedly lost millions of dollars in user funds.

A third party that enables anonymous transactions by grouping payments together, obscuring their sources.

Metamask is a Chrome extension which allows users to store and transact Ethereum and other ERC-20 tokens.

The process of allowing two different cryptocurrencies using the same consensus algorithm to be mined simultaneously. 

A node (device running the full software of a cryptocurrency) that fulfills more purposes than regular nodes - such as increasing privacy, providing instant transactions, and participating in governance.

A very small payment made possible with digital currencies.

The version of a protocol that uses real money. A cryptocurrency is generally considered to be “live” after the first Mainnet block (the genesis block) is mined.

A mathematical problem that is solved by participants of a blockchain to verify transactions in exchange for block rewards.

An agreement that allows individuals to sell their computing power for the purposes of verifying transactions on a blockchain.

John McAfee (the creator of McAfee antivirus) is a cybersecurity mogul who is known for promoting cryptocurrency and speculating about altcoins.

The process by which users on a PoS blockchain verify transactions and receive new coins for their participation.

An arbitrary number that is used only once in cryptography to make replay attacks impossible.

Digital agreements between users on NEO's platform that are carried out automatically when their terms are met.

A cryptocurrency that allows data (and transactions) to be written onto its blockchain.

The quality by which cryptocurrencies become more useful as more people use them.

Cardano's Proof-of-stake algorithm. It is used to randomly pick the next node to produce a block in. Ouroboros divides physical time into epochs, and then slots. Slot leaders have the sole right to produce one block and are chosen from the group of stakeholders.

Over The Counter Exchange, also known as Off-Exchange Trading. Trades that occur between two parties rather than using a centralized exchange.

A third-party entity capable of transmitting reliable information to a blockchain so that smart-contracts can be executed.

A grouping of addresses that receive coins in a cryptocurrency transaction.

Operations Security. Refers to how well assets are protected.

Peer-to-Peer. Refers to networks in which individuals connect to each other rather than a central authority.

Permissionless refers to public blockchains (like Bitcoin) - anyone can generate an address and transact BTC.

If you are running a full node, a “peer” is some else also running a full node.

Outputs of an algorithm that can be examined and verified. This term is commonly used in cryptocurrency gambling.

A portion of the total supply of a cryptocurrency reserved for its founders. These funds are often marked as funds to pay developers or fund future ventures, but cryptocurencies with premines are generally viewed as less legitimate and fair those without premines.

Similar to a password but often longer. Where a password is generally a single word -- a passphrase can be a combination of words.

A situation that occurs when an asset's market value is far higher than it's actual worth, making a sharp drop in price imminent.

Proof of Stake and Trust. A consensus mechanism used by Waltonchain that relies on token holders (nodes) to verify transactions while retaining information about nodes' past performance to give higher rewards to the most reliable nodes.

A consensus mechanism for verifying a blockchain in which miners send coins to an unspendable address

PoI stands for Proof-of-Importance. It is a new consensus algorithm that requires users to stake currency to participate in the consensus. Compared to PoS, it adds importance to staking. Thus, it takes into account one’s involvement in the network. PoI was introduced by NEM.

A process of storing information that cannot be changed or deleted.

a fraudulent type of operation where a company attracts investors to send money, with expected profits in return. The company pays back investor profits using later investors’ money. Once the company can no longer attract new investors, then payments cannot be made to clients, the company collapses and investors lose money.

The consensus algorithm introduced by Bitcoin. PoW requires miners to compete against each other to add new block and earn rewards.

A cryptocurrency that uses both PoW and PoS in its consensus mechanism to offer increased security.

A physical piece of paper containing a private key, a public key, and often corresponding QR codes.

Pseudonymity is an almost anonymous state in which users have a unique identifier that is different from their real name.

QRTs. Customizable tokens that can be created using Quantum Resistant Ledger. QRTs are resistant to attacks from quantum computing.

A method of increasing monetary supply (and lowering interest rates) by introducing new money to the market from a central authority.

Transfer of currency across a large distance, usually across borders.

A platform that connects banks, payment providers, and digital asset exchanges to provide frictionless transactions.

A plan that sets goals and deadlines for a project's future development.

An individual that contributes their tokens to Kyber Network's Dynamic Reserve Pool to improve the platform's liquidity.

A blockchain that runs separately from a cryptocurrency's main blockchain, using the native currency to carry out transactions. Subchains help scalability by reducing the amount of data stored on a cryptocurrency's main blockchain, often called the "parent chain."

A measure of how easily a cryptocurrency will be able to handle more users and increased transactions.

An individual who predicts future prices of assets and makes bets based on their predictions.

A computer that is far more powerful than an ordianry computer due to its superior performance.

A derogatory term used to describe altcoins that are based on faulty technology or have little promise for the future.

A block that has been worked on by a miner but is not included in the blockchain because another miner successfully completes another block first.

Secure Hash Algorithm 256. An algorithm used by some Proof of Work consensus mechanisms (most notably, Bitcoin's).

A platform that functions alongside an existing blockchain protocol, allowing transactions to occur off of the main blockchain. Sidechains can be customized to allow features like faster transaction time and increased anonymity.

Agreements between two parties that self-execute when their terms are met and automatically cancel when their terms are not met.

An alternative to mining rewards. Staking rewards are earned by putting a certain amount of your cryptocurrency up as a 'stake' to confirm transactions. Rewards are given for doing this.

An individual that volunteers to lock some of their coins or tokens up to verify transactions on a blockchain in exchange for staking rewards.

An online black market on the Darknet best known as a place individuals could buy and sell illegal goods and services. One of the first communities to use Bitcoin as currency.

The pseudonym of the original creator(s) of Bitcoin. Also the smallest sub-unit Bitcoin can be divided into: 1 Satoshi = 1/100,000,000 of a Bitcoin.

A feature of PIVX that allows users to complete transactions instantly without needing to wait for confirmations.

An altcoin that is marketed as technology with potential, but is really just sold to make money with no promise of a future use case.

The Securities and Exchange Commision. A regulatory US agency responsible for the investigation and shut down of several cryptocurrency-related projects.

An indication of support for a feature, often sent out by miners to inform the general public of their opinion.

Selling, before buying, and intending to repurchase the stock at a lower price to realize the profit from a coin/asset decreasing in value. Basically profiting from the falling price of an asset.

Any cryptocurrency pegged to a stable asset for the purpose of reducing price volatility.

A measure of how frequently and how heavily a cryptocurrency is bought and/or sold during a given time period. 

An identical version of a protocol that uses fake money to discover bugs without the consequences such bugs would have on a Mainnet protocol.

The first hardware wallet, created by a Bitcoiner called “Slush.”

A computing system that can perform a whole set of computational functions is considered “Turing Complete.”

A cryptocurrency created using another platform (like Ethereum). Tokens operate by using the technology of the platform on which they were created.

In the cryptocurrency sphere a Tether is a type of coin. This coin is ‘tethered’ or paired 1-to-1 with the U.S. Dollar.

A feature of cryptocurrency exchanges that makes it easy for individuals to buy one cryptocurrency with a different cryptocurrency. For example, a BTC/DASH trading pair allows an individual to buy DASH with BTC or vice versa.

The ability of a system to be trusted without the need of trusting the individuals with which you are transacting.

Transactions per second. A measure which describes how fast a cryptocurrency can handle its users' transactions.

Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol. A set of protocols that allow multiple computers to communicate.

A measure that describes the strength of association between an address and earlier transaction addresses.

A unit of currency consumed in a process. For example, an arcade token that gets used when a game is played or a coin like BNB Binance token, which is used to pay exchange fees.

The acronym for stable coins issued by Tether Limited: U.S. Dollar Tether.

An adult person without an account at a bank or other financial institution. 

A measure that describes how rapidly an asset tends to fluctuate in price.

A measure used to describe the rate at which currency is exchanged from transaction to transaction.

A highly respected programmer responsible for writing Ethereum's white paper and co-creating Ethereum's technology.

Software or devices that contain public and private keys for storing cryptocurrencies

A very wealthy individual capable of making large trades.

A list of registered and approved participants in an ICO. Whitelists are used to exclude non-accredited investors in order to better comply with regulations.

The native currency of Monero.

Zero-Knowledge Succinct Non-Interactive Argument of Knowledge. Zk-SNARKs is a technology which allows cryptocurrencies to shield transaction information from uninvolved parties.

Two Factor Authentication. A protective measure that uses one-time passwords to prevent keyloggers from gaining unauthorized access to accounts.

A hypothetical attack in which a malicious individual gains control of more than half of a cryptocurrency’s hashing power and is then able to re-write old blocks, allowing double-spend.