The world of Web3—a catch-all term referring to a next iteration of the internet that incorporates blockchain technology—has an overwhelming amount of slang, jargon, and acronyms.
While Crypto Twitter (CT) has used many of these phrases for years, the decentralized finance (DeFi) and NFT communities have adopted many terms and created some more of their own.
Here’s part of the ever-growing list:
ALPHA — Insider knowledge or intel.
ANON — Anonymous person on the internet. When someone uses “anon,” they’re referring to a non-specific person. The term is often used sarcastically and generally. For example, “Dear anon, please don’t FUD my bags. Sincerely, me.”
APE — As a noun, it refers to Bored Ape Yacht Club NFTs. As a verb, it refers to “apeing” into something, which is buying a lot of something on a whim or without doing much research beforehand. Degens love “apeing” into different projects.
BAGS — Assets, typically in notable quantities. Example phrases include “My Bored Ape bags are holding strong,” “Don’t FUD my bags” or “I have a fat bag of DOGE.”
DEGEN — A degenerate. DeFi degens and NFT degens typically live a “degenerate” lifestyle that involves high-risk trading, an obsession with crypto, and sometimes a lack of self-care habits. NFT degens often prioritize buying and selling NFTs over other important life activities, such as school or work.
DIAMOND HANDS — Holding onto an asset for a long time, through thick and thin. Someone who is “diamond-handing” or has “diamond hands” has held—or hodled—their crypto or NFTs for a while.
FP/FLOOR PRICE — The minimum “buy now” sale price for an NFT. Floor prices can fluctuate wildly.
FREN — Friend. This is an intentional, quirky misspelling of the word friend, but it’s typically delivered with a warmer, youthful pronunciation and tone.
FUD — Fear, uncertainty, and doubt. Feelings of “FUD” are quite common in the volatile crypto and NFT market. People critique others for “fudding” various coins and projects on the internet.
GAS — Transaction fees on Ethereum network. Gas fees increase when there is more traffic.
GM — Good morning. It’s a term used to promote positivity, greet others, and build a sense of “community” among crypto and NFT traders in Discord servers, Telegram chats, and Twitter.
GN — Good night. Similar to gm, but used in the evening. It’s often used as a signal the user is logging off for the night.
GRIND/GRINDING — Doing hard, tedious or boring work toward a goal. Used in gaming to refer to leveling up through mindless resource-farming. Used in NFT space to refer to “Discord grinding,” which is where, for some collections, users must frequently type or engage in a collection’s Discord server in order to get on said collection’s presale list.
HODL — This term originated from a BitcoinTalk forum post in 2013 titled, “I AM HODLING,” which was a typo for “holding.” (A common misconception is that HODL began as an acronym for “Hold On for Dear Life”—it did not.) The Bitcoin trader who wrote the post was referring to holding his position and not selling his Bitcoin. Since then, the intentional missing “HODL” has taken off and become a mantra of sorts for the crypto and NFT communities.
LFG — Let’s fucking go. An excited phrase used to hype up and congratulate people, projects, or achievements.
LOOKS RARE — Used to describe a rare NFT, which is one with rare traits. Phrase also can be used sarcastically or ironically, to refer to common or ugly NFTs.
MINT — NFT primary sale. Mint can be a noun or a verb. For example, “The Cool Cats mint only cost 0.02 Ethereum!” Or, “I minted an Otherdeed NFT last week.”
MOON — Dramatic increase in value (verb). The word “moon” in crypto refers to the price of assets going up over a period of time. Example phrases include “wen moon,” meaning, “when will [asset] value dramatically increase?” Or “Doge is mooning right now.”
MOONBAG — A crypto term referring to a “bag” of assets that consists of only one’s profits, after the person has removed their initial investment. This strategy reduces one’s risk and allows them to keep a “moonbag” of said asset in the hopes that its value will continue to go up.
MOONBOY/MOONGIRL — A person who holds an asset and believes said asset’s value is going “to the moon,” or to dramatically increase in a relatively short period of time. Can be used to describe others or oneself after realizing that one was being overly optimistic about the future of a cryptocurrency or NFT project.
NFA/DYOR — Not financial advice/Do your own research. Disclaimers often used by individuals on social media who do not want to be held accountable if you take their crypto or NFT trading advice. Often said together as a phrase, “Not financial advice. Do your own research.”
NGMI — Not gonna make it. A dismissive or negative term used to describe people or projects that won’t be successful or around long-term.
NORMIE — Someone who doesn’t hold any cryptocurrency or NFTs, or someone who lacks knowledge about crypto or NFT markets.
PAPER HANDS — The opposite of diamond hands. Paper handing or having paper hands refers to those who buy and sell assets within shorter timeframes, typically anywhere from a few minutes to a few months. The “paper” in paper handing refers to paper cash bills. Paper handers often panic-sell assets early for liquidity, and then awkwardly watch from the sidelines as the asset continues to increase in value.
Those with paper hands typically make less of a profit than those with diamond hands, because they have not held an asset long enough for it to appreciate in value. Paperhands.gg lets users find out which NFTs they have “paperhanded” in the past.
PFP — Profile picture. An acronym that refers to one’s profile picture on social media or messaging platforms. PFP NFTs are NFTs designed to be used as profile pictures on social media. PFP NFTs are typically square-shaped and show the portrait of a character from the chest up.
PROBABLY NOTHING/SOMETHING — If someone says that something is “probably nothing,” it is definitely something and is a tongue-in-cheek way of calling attention to some big news. “Probably something” has the same meaning.
RIGHT-CLICK SAVE — To right-click on an image of an NFT and save it to your computer. Right-clicking and saving is a common retort from NFT haters, who believe that NFTs are just JPGs and do not believe in the value of blockchain-based verifiable ownership.
RUG/RUGPULL — A scam or misleading project, where the founders of said project suddenly disappear (with their money yoinked from the project). There have been rugpulls in crypto, DeFi, and NFTs. No one is safe from “getting rugged.”
SEEMS LEGIT — Seems legitimate. Phrase is used ironically when something does not actually seem legitimate.
SER — Sir. A way to address someone in the NFT community: “gm ser.”
TOP SIGNAL — A sign that the market value of something has reached its current peak. On crypto and NFT Twitter, a “top signal” could be a celebrity buying from an NFT project, a retail store making an NFT collection, or a celebrity releasing their own social token.
WAGMI — We’re all gonna make it. An optimistic term thrown around by NFT communities to encourage positivity and the idea that everyone is going to succeed financially in the NFT space, regardless of whether or not that is actually true.
WHITELIST/WL/ALLOWLIST — The presale list of crypto wallet addresses allowed to mint first from a new collection. “Wen WL?” Means “When whitelist,” or “When is the whitelist opening/when can I get on the whitelist?” Some find the word whitelist unsavory or offensive and prefer the word “allowlist,” which also refers to an NFT presale list.
YUGA — Yuga Labs, creators of the Bored Ape Yacht Club and present-day owners of the CryptoPunks and Meebits. Also referred to as YL.
The best of Decrypt straight to your inbox.
Get the top stories curated daily, weekly roundups & deep dives straight to your inbox.
