Newcomers to the cryptocurrency market are often overwhelmed by various terms and concepts related to different tokens or currencies. This article aims to provide readers with a compilation of common 50 terms and explanations regarding competitive coins, shitcoins, meme coins, air coins, and more.
Table of Contents:
50 Cryptocurrency Terms
Classification of Cryptocurrencies
Competitive Coins (Altcoins)
Shitcoins
Meme Coins
Air Coins
For beginners in the cryptocurrency market, they may initially feel overwhelmed by various terms (FOMO, HODL, ATH…) or token names (competitive coins, shitcoins, meme coins) and other concepts. This article aims to organize these various cryptocurrency terms and concepts to help readers explore the crypto world more conveniently.
FOMO
– Fear of Missing Out, refers to the fear of missing investment opportunities.
GM
– Good Morning, commonly used on social media to express “good morning.”
HODL
– Originally a misspelling of “hold,” it has been used by the community to refer to holding cryptocurrencies for the long term without selling.
Bear Market
– A market period characterized by a general decline in prices.
Bull Market
– A market period characterized by a general increase in prices.
ATH
– All-Time High, refers to the highest price level of a cryptocurrency.
ATL
– All-Time Low, refers to the lowest price level of a cryptocurrency.
Whale
– A term used to describe investors holding a large amount of cryptocurrency.
Pump and Dump
– Manipulating market prices to quickly sell and make profits.
DeFi
– Decentralized Finance, refers to decentralized financial services.
Staking
– Staking cryptocurrency to participate in the network consensus process and often receive rewards.
Mining
– The process of obtaining cryptocurrency as a reward through computational calculations.
Liquidity Pool
– A pool where users deposit their tokens to provide liquidity to exchanges.
Yield Farming
– A strategy to earn profits through DeFi services.
ICO
– Initial Coin Offering, the first issuance of tokens.
DEX
– Decentralized Exchange, a decentralized trading platform.
Cex
– Centralized Exchange, a centralized trading platform.
Fiat
– Fiat currency, government-issued currency.
Wallet
– A digital tool for storing cryptocurrencies.
Private Key
– A key password for secure access to cryptocurrencies.
Public Key
– Equivalent to a cryptocurrency address.
Smart Contract
– A program that automatically executes contract terms on a blockchain network.
Gas Fees
– The cost of executing transactions or contracts on the Ethereum network.
NFT
– Non-Fungible Token, represents unique digital assets.
Rug Pull
– A type of scam where developers suddenly withdraw from the market after attracting investments.
Liquidity
– The amount of funds available for trading in the market.
Moon/Mooning
– Refers to a rapid increase in the price of a cryptocurrency.
Shill
– Promoting a specific cryptocurrency project to attract buyers.
Rekt
– Derived from “wrecked,” refers to significant losses.
DYOR
– Do Your Own Research, conduct your own research.
FUD
– Fear, Uncertainty, Doubt, refers to the spread of negative information.
BTD/BTFD
– Buy The Dip, buying when the price is falling.
APY
– Annual Percentage Yield, the annual rate of return.
TVL
– Total Value Locked, commonly used to measure the scale of DeFi projects.
KYC
– Know Your Customer, regulations to prevent money laundering.
AML
– Anti-Money Laundering, measures against money laundering.
DAO
– Decentralized Autonomous Organization, a decentralized self-governing organization.
CBDC
– Central Bank Digital Currency, digital currency issued by a central bank.
Layer 1
– Layer 1 blockchain platforms, such as Bitcoin and Ethereum.
Layer 2
– Layer 2 solutions used to scale Layer 1 blockchains, such as Arbitrum One, Optimism, and Base.
Cross-chain
– Supports interoperability between different blockchains.
Oracle
– A system that provides real-world data to smart contracts.
Airdrop
– Distributing tokens for free to specific user groups.
Soft Fork
– A blockchain update that is compatible with older versions.
Hard Fork
– A blockchain update that is not compatible with older versions, resulting in chain splitting.
Block Reward
– The amount of cryptocurrency received when successfully mining a block.
Hash Rate
– The measure of a blockchain network’s processing power.
Satoshi (SATS)
– The smallest unit of Bitcoin, 1 Bitcoin = 100,000,000 satoshis.
Gwei
– The unit of Ethereum, commonly used to measure transaction fees on the Ethereum network. 1 Gwei = 0.000000001 ETH.
Seed Phrase
– A series of words used to recover or backup a cryptocurrency wallet.
Competitive Coins (Altcoins) are a collective term for all cryptocurrencies other than Bitcoin, which means they are alternatives to Bitcoin. The emergence of altcoins is mainly to improve certain features of Bitcoin or provide functionalities that Bitcoin does not have. They may differ from Bitcoin in the following aspects:
Consensus Mechanism:
Many altcoins adopt different consensus mechanisms from Bitcoin, such as Ethereum’s later adoption of Proof of Stake (PoS) mechanism and EOS chain’s adoption of Delegated Proof of Stake (DPoS) mechanism.
Transaction Speed and Fees:
Some altcoins focus on improving transaction speed and reducing transaction costs to be more suitable for daily transactions and micro-payments.
Smart Contracts and Decentralized Applications:
Ethereum is one of the most famous altcoins, and it introduced smart contract functionality, which allows developers to create decentralized applications (DApps) on its blockchain.
Specific Purposes or Community-Oriented:
Some altcoins are designed for specific community or industry needs, such as focusing on supporting decentralized financial services (DeFi) or community governance.
Supply Cap and Issuance Method:
Unlike Bitcoin’s fixed supply limit of 21 million, some altcoins have different supply limit policies or adopt different issuance and reward mechanisms.
The diversity and innovation of altcoins bring rich choices and possibilities to the cryptocurrency market, but they also come with varying degrees of risks and challenges. When considering investing in altcoins, it is important for investors to have a deep understanding and evaluation of their underlying technology, team, market position, and potential risks.
Shitcoins are another term used in the cryptocurrency community. Initially, like altcoins, they were used to refer to all cryptocurrencies other than Bitcoin. However, later, it became more commonly used to describe cryptocurrencies that are considered to lack substantial content, purpose, or value. They may have the following characteristics:
Lack of Innovation or Uniqueness:
Many shitcoins are merely slight variations of existing cryptocurrencies without providing any significant innovation or unique features.
Driven by Hype:
The value of these coins is often influenced by market hype and speculative behavior rather than their technical advantages or potential applications.
Lack of Long-term Plans and Support:
Developers of shitcoins may lack long-term support plans or ongoing technical development strategies.
Market Manipulation Risks:
These cryptocurrencies are susceptible to market manipulation.
Lack of Transparency:
The development team of these coins may lack transparency, clear communication, and public development processes.
High-Risk Investment:
Due to the aforementioned factors, investing in shitcoins is often considered high-risk and may lead to significant financial losses.
Although this term is sometimes used to devalue or criticize certain cryptocurrencies, these coins may actually have some potential or community support. Therefore, it is important to conduct in-depth research and careful risk assessment when evaluating any cryptocurrency.
Meme Coins are a type of cryptocurrency created based on internet memes or popular culture elements. These cryptocurrencies are often characterized by humor, satire, or entertainment and their value and popularity are often closely related to social media activities and internet trends. Here are some key characteristics of meme coins:
Community-Driven:
Meme coins often have active online communities, and community members actively promote these coins through social media and online forums.
High Price Volatility:
Due to meme coins’ value being heavily influenced by community sentiment and internet trends, their market performance is often highly volatile.
Lack of Clear Practical Applications:
Many meme coins do not have clear functions or application purposes at their inception; they are more of a product of fun and internet culture.
Internet Hype and Media Attention:
The popularity and value of meme coins are often closely related to internet hype and media attention, sometimes even driven by celebrities or influencers.
Market Risk:
Due to their heavy dependence on internet trends and community sentiment, investing in meme coins is generally considered high-risk.
One of the most famous meme coins is Dogecoin (DOGE), which was initially created as a humorous parody of Bitcoin, featuring the internet meme of a Japanese Shiba Inu as its logo. However, over time, Dogecoin has gained a large following and community support. Tesla’s founder, Elon Musk, has openly supported Dogecoin, and DOGE has also been accepted as a means of payment by some merchants.
Meme coins showcase an interesting aspect of cryptocurrency culture and highlight the volatility and non-traditional nature of the crypto market.
Air Coins are often used to describe cryptocurrencies that are perceived to have no real value, support, or utility or are considered fraudulent projects. These cryptocurrencies are often seen as castles in the air, existing only in name and promotion without a solid foundation or reasonable investment rationale. Here are some characteristics of air coins:
Lack of Substantial Support:
Air coins typically lack strong business models, technological innovations, or practical applications as support.
Market Speculation:
The value of these coins mostly relies on market speculation and false advertising rather than their intrinsic value or potential applications.
High Risk and Speculative Nature:
Investing in air coins carries extremely high risks as their prices are easily manipulated and highly volatile.
Lack of Transparency and Reliability:
The development team and operations of these coins often lack transparency and sometimes involve fraudulent activities.
Possibility of Rapid Disappearance:
Due to the lack of substantial foundation, these coins may quickly disappear, especially after market hype subsides.
Overall, air coins are a negative term used to describe cryptocurrencies that may seem attractive but lack lasting value. It is essential to conduct thorough market research and risk assessment before considering investing in any cryptocurrency to avoid financial harm.