Common Cryptocurrency Slang Words

The cryptocurrency space is made up of a flourishing community. They have come up with some new words or more adequately; crypto slang. These words help them to describe individuals, coins or situations with just one word. Here is a list of 26 of the most well-known words in alphabetical order that you should know.

1. Altcoin

This used to mean every cryptocurrency other than Bitcoin.

Today this is not so much the case, instead, it depends on your audience. There is the crowd that considers altcoins to be any crypto other than Bitcoin and Ether.

For others, altcoins are tokens built on top of a platform. For example, EOS built on top of the Ethereum blockchain. So in technical terms, it would mean any non-layer one asset.

2. Bagholder

This is someone that wanted to make a profit from their coins. However, he/she ended up holding onto the coins until the end of a market nose-dive. Others would have left the investment or the trade beforehand, but they were left holding the bag.

3. Bitcoin maximalist

These people are also known as maxis. They are ride-or-die believers in Bitcoin and don’t think other currencies have any contribution to make in the world. For them, Bitcoin is superior to all other coins.

4. Bearwhale

A bear in finance terms means a trader or investor who thinks the market is going down. A whale is a trader or investor that has a significant amount of a particular coin. If you cross the two together you get a person that is able to drive the price down of a cryptocurrency. This is possible when he dumps a large portion or all of his stake in crypto in one go. In other words, he takes advantage of his position to profit from it.

5. Cryptosis

Someone immersed completely into the cryptocurrency world where he lives and breathes crypto. This person is constantly trying to gain knowledge about crypto and likes to talk about crypto. 

6. DeFi

An abbreviation of “decentralised finance”. Thanks to blockchain technology cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin are peer-to-peer and owned by the crowd. There are no third parties in control of the coins or approving and effecting transactions. This is unlike our current system which uses banks and makes finance centralised.  

7. Fiat

This is not originally from the crypto space, it is a term to refer to sovereign currencies like the US dollar, Chinese Yuan, Japanese Yen, Euro etc. Fiat currency is not backed by a physical commodity, but by the government.

People make clear distinctions in the cryptocurrency space between fiat and crypto. This is because a good chunk of the individuals originally in the crypto space are in it for ideological reasons.

Mining brings into circulation new cryptocurrencies from the blockchain like Bitcoin. There is only a finite amount available of cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin. This is in contrast to the expanding money supply created by governments and institutions since they control fiat currencies. Expanding the money supply debases fiat currencies and increases the cost of living.

8. Fish

These are small fry, individuals that buy and sell small quantities of crypto. Markets need both smaller and larger purchasers for them to be healthy.

9. Flippening

An obscure crypto slang word. This is the point at which Ethereum’s market cap overtakes that of Bitcoin. Currently, Bitcoin’s market cap is five times that of Ethereum. If it is a possibility, it has a long way to go.

10. FOLE

Not originally from the crypto space. FOLE is an abbreviation for the fear of losing everything. As soon as the price of a coin starts going down some people get anxious and sell quickly just in case it tanks. An individual has to be in control of their emotions to not experience FOLE. If the coin invested in has sound fundamentals then the investor should wait until the market goes back up. Experiencing FOLE can lead to bad decisions and end up sustaining losses. This is the opposite of FOMO

11. FOMO

Not originally crypto slang. FOMO is an abbreviation for the fear of missing out. Individuals who experience FOMO usually don’t want to suffer the fear of regret. When they see the market going up they want to do the same as everyone else is doing. They end up buying cryptocurrency so they don’t miss out on the gains of the rally.

12. FUD

Short for “fear, uncertainty and doubt”. FUD is fear-mongering spread through negative rumours to make others doubt their viewpoints. It is becoming in vogue to use this crypto slang word.

13. Hash rate

The hash rate shows a miner’s performance speed. It is important as it determines how quickly mining and blockchain operations occur as it has an impact on revenue. The more blocks are mined or approved in any given time period the better. The most common way of measuring it is hash per second.

14. HODL

This word is quite commonly used in crypto slang. It is an abbreviation of “hold on for dear life”. This means holding onto the coins rather than selling them even if the cryptocurrency price is taking a nose dive down. An individual who does this is known as a hodler and he/she will be holdling coins.

15. Hopium

A combination of the words “hope” and “opium”. It is a borrowed word from the trading community. Hopium is a delusion to the point where an individual will not sell their crypto even if it has tanked considerably. This person holds on to their crypto in the hope that it will bounce back better than ever. It is more about speculation and not based on sound fundamentals.    

16. Mooning

In the case of the crypto space, it does not refer to the act of exposing one’s backside in public! It refers to the situation where a cryptocurrency’s price is going parabolic. “Mooning” or “going to the moon” is the phrased to denote this. Above all else, it is a way of celebrating gains.

17. No coiner

Someone that does not own crypto.

18. Newbie

A newbie refers to an individual that is new to the crypto space. This is a word borrowed from esports.

19. Token

Tokens cannot be mined, this differentiates them from coins. They exist on the blockchain and may be traded for fiat eventually. It would be allowed to take place if the company that created them becomes valuable. This is done to enable the company to fund its start-up project and get things rolling.

Tokens are not so much crypto slang and more like acceptable English terms. It is worth including it here since it is a basic term that anyone should know.

20. Rekt

This word was originally used in esports which means “wrecked”. In the crypto sphere, it refers to a person that lost a lot of money in crypto.

21. Sats

A Sat is the smallest unit of bitcoin. It is short for “Satoshis” which is named after Satoshi Nakamoto the creator of Bitcoin. One Sat or Satoshi is 0.00000001 BTC.

22. Shill

This is a borrowed word that came into the cryptocurrency space. It refers to an individual with a hidden agenda who promotes cryptocurrency for their own personal gain.

23. Shitcoin

Quite a well known crypto slang term. It refers to a cryptocurrency that is intrinsically worthless. Shitcoins have no sound fundamentals and are usually created for fun or to scam investors.

24. Vaporware

Some coins get hyped up a lot, but unfortunately they misrepresent the reality of what is truly going on. They never get shipped to completion. Like vapor, the project simply evaporated into thin air. Meanwhile also taking the money that was invested into it.

25. Whale

Borrowed from other industries, this is a term which has kept a similar meaning. In this case, it refers to an individual or entity that owns at least 5% of a cryptocurrency coin. Whales have the capability to throw their weight around and are able to manipulate the cryptocurrency due to the amount they hold.

26. Wen Lambo?

This is quite a cool crypto slang term that is used quite often within the crypto community. Note that ‘wen’ is the shortened form of ‘when’ and how it is spelt in slang. Asking “Wen Lambo?” is the equivalent of asking someone when will they become crypto-rich. The type of rich that will be able to afford an expensive Lamborghini luxury car.  

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