NFT Labs: How to quickly become an NFT veteran? Check 33 Community Terms(Slang)

How to quickly become an NFT veteran？ Check 33 Community Terms(Slang)

Many terms, abbreviations, confusing slang, and intentional misspellings are circulating in the NFT industry, leaving many rookies confused. Some of them are essential knowledge to step into the NFT industry. Others are just “boring” slang.

This article will introduce 23 important entry-level NFT terms and 9 somewhat nonsensical industry jargon. After mastering these terms, I hope you can feel the joy of genuinely becoming an NFT veteran.

Entry-Level NFT Terms

1.10k projects

10k project refers to an NFT collection consisting of about 10,000 avatars. In 2017, the CryptoPunks series of collectibles pioneered this type of NFT project. To date, new collectibles are emerging from these NFT projects. It is worth mentioning that this term refers only to this type of avatar collection and does not specify the exact number of avatars, so not all such NFTs consist of 10,000 avatars.

2.Airdrop

When you receive an airdrop, your wallet will automatically receive a certain amount of a particular digital asset or new NFT without paying any fees. This practice is widespread in the digital asset world and has also become a popular way for NFT projects to incentivize early holders, such as new artworks that can be used as NFT airdrops.

3.Apeing(into something)

This term has nothing to do with 10k projects like Bored Ape Yacht Club that are themed around the Bored Ape. “ape into something” refers to FOMO (Fear of Missing Out), spending money that your account cannot support, and/or investing without detailed research on the project.

4.Avatar project

Avatar project basically has the same meaning as 10k project, which refers to collections containing thousands of NFT “avatars,” such as CryptoPunks, Bored Ape Yacht Club, Cool Cats, Gutter Cat Gang, etc.

5.Burn

Burn refers to the destruction of NFTs. For example, if only 5,000 pieces of collectibles scheduled initially to consist of 10,000 NFTs are sold, the development team may decide to “burn” the remaining 5,000 NFTs; for example, some projects allow token holders to “burn” two NFTs Mint a new, rarer coin.

6.DAO

DAO refers to “Decentralized Autonomous Organization.” When you hold an NFT in a project such as Head DAO, you, along with other holders, gain voting rights and governance rights over the project's future actions and overall direction. Many NFT projects build similar structures, strengthen community incentives, and ensure long-term support.

7.Diamond hands

Diamond hands are among the most popular slang terms in digital assets and the NFT industry. It has its own emoji packs and has even become the theme of the entire NFT project. People with “Diamond Hands” are not afraid of market fluctuations and insist on holding positions when negative news is rampant, market sentiment is sluggish, or when they encounter FUD(see Article 9 for specific definitions) in the digital asset field.

In the English context, Diamond hands can also be used as a verb, such as “She diamond-handed bitcoin through the 2018 bear market.” (i.e., “She held on to the 2018 bear market.”)

8.Floor

The Floor or Floor Price of a project refers to the lowest price for purchasing any NFT in the project on the secondary market. The floor is the most popular metric for tracking the performance of a project over a while or measuring the project's performance compared to other projects.

9.FUD

FUD means “Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt.” The term in the digital asset and NFT industry describes inaccurate or false negative news, tweets, and Discord messages. You will often see people blaming FUD for causing NFT prices to plummet.

10.Gas

Gas (miner fee) refers to the expenses incurred on blockchain transactions. The gas is negligible when you buy NFTs on a blockchain like Solana. However, on Ethereum, gas fees can be as low as $50, depending on the complexity of network transactions. The lower the complexity, the lower the cost; the higher the complexity, the higher the price.

11.Gas war

The gas war (miner fee war) can be described as a bloody storm based on gas. Gas war is so common in Ethereum that it has almost become a “welcoming ceremony.” Once a well-known NFT collectible is launched, you will compete with 100,000 people for 10,000 NFTs, so you have to increase the gas fee to win the transaction at a higher price than others. This is called a gas war.

12.Generative art

Generative art is arguably one of the critical digital art and collecting innovations in recent years. Well-known collections such as the Bored Ape Yacht Club, Cool Cats, Sup Ducks, and Pudgy Penguins are all derived from generative art. There is plenty of good quality material for further reading on this concept.

In short, the NFTs in each collectible collection share specific characteristics in common: clothing, skin or coat color, eye shape, headgear, background color, and more. 20 different outfits, 20 different pairs of eyes, 20 different backgrounds... Mixing and matching these features makes it possible to create a collection of 10,000 unique NFTs. While these essential features are drawn by humans, each NFT is automatically generated by a computer through a random combination of all optional traits. This process is thus defined as “generative.”

13.Metadata

In short, understood from a non-technical point of view, the metadata of an NFT basically includes all the necessary and unique data that makes the NFT unique. The most exciting fact is that metadata defines the appearance of a piece of art or collectible. This is also why you have to refresh the metadata on OpenSea to see how your newly minted NFT will look.

14.Minting

When you buy a brand new NFT from the issuer, you are minting this NFT. Minting refers to the process of creating this NFT on the blockchain.

15.MM

MM (MetaMask) is the most popular NFT wallet in the Ethereum ecosystem.

16.OS

OS (OpenSea) is the largest NFT marketplace on Ethereum.

17.Paper hands

Paper hands and diamond hands have the exact opposite meaning. This term is frequently used in the NFT industry but is not limited to the NFT industry. It refers to someone selling something, such as a digital asset like an NFT, at a price that others think is too low.Paper hands can also be used as verbs, as in “Someone just paper-handed a Cool Cat for 6 E!” (i.e., “Someone just sold a Cool Cat for 6E!”)

18.PFP project

PFP is the abbreviation of profile picture, and its meaning is the same as the 10k project and avatar project introduced above. The term was born from avatars in such projects that are often used as personal photos on social platforms such as Twitter and Discord.

19.Reveal

In the context of NFTs, the meaning of the word reveal may differ from our general perception. In a newly released generative project, the artwork is usually not created until the NFT is minted, so you don't know exactly what you're buying until you buy it. In other words, art is only revealed after it has been purchased. The creators behind the collectible can decide whether to display it immediately after the collectible is sold out or 24/48 hours later.

20.Rugpull

Rugpull is a classic scam in which the developers behind a seemingly legitimate project take all the money after the project is launched and disappears. You may get an NFT in return, but it will most likely be worthless and not even tradable on the secondary market, so be wary of getting involved in a rug pull.

In English, Rugpull is also often used as a verb, such as “I got rug pulled” and “I got rugged.” You can also see some people using the word “rug” on Discord, usually spreading FUD within a particular project's community.

21.Snapshot

Snapshot is related to the airdrop described above. Often a team will take a picture at some point to determine eligibility for an airdrop. For example, it is stipulated that Snapshot will be performed at 4:00 pm on November 11, Universal Standard Time (UTC). Everyone who holds NFT X in the wallet will receive free NFT Y next week.

22.(Floor) Sweep

The term sweeping is often used out of interest in the project floor. Sweeping refers to the massive purchase of NFTs at the lowest price in a collection of collectibles on the secondary market. Some teams sometimes sweep on their own initiative or at the community's request for their projects. In addition, individuals known as whales may also perform cleaning.

23.Whale

Whale refers to people who hold large amounts of money, either yet to invest or have invested in high-priced NFT projects. Therefore, anyone with a thousand E or 200 Bored Apes in an account would be considered a whale. Whale's presence plays a significant role in its ability to drive the market in both directions by buying or selling specific collectibles in bulk.

24.Diamond Hands/Paper hands

Diamond hands usually refer to holding a certain NFT firmly, as firm as a diamond, able to withstand risks, and at the same time have a higher probability of obtaining high returns, which is suitable for optimism about the long-term operation of a particular project party.

Contrary to diamond hands, paper hands usually mean that you cannot hold a certain NFT firmly and tend to buy and sell quickly;. However, it is challenging to obtain exaggerated profit orders, the risk is shallow, and it is suitable for bear markets or optimistic about the short-term popularity of a particular project.

Fun Moments: Read abbreviations and “typos” and become an insider now

In addition to the above 23 important NFT terms, there is some nonsensical but important industry jargon. Let's find out together!

1.Ded

Ded is a misspelling of Dead and can be used to refer to an item being rug pulled.

2.GM

GM is the abbreviation of good morning. 24 hours a day, you can see this word on Twitter and Discord, which reflects the global nature and friendly atmosphere of the NFT circle.

3.GN

GN stands for a good night, and you can use it at will.

4.GMT

GMI is also an extremely popular abbreviation, along with derivatives WAGMI and NGMI. GMI (Going to make it) means “successful harvest.” WAGMI (We're all going to make it) means “We can all be successful.” NAMI (Not going to make it) means the exact opposite, meaning “not going to make it.” By using these terms as often as possible, you can establish yourself as a true NFT connoisseur.

5.Hodl

Hodl is an old-fashioned term in the digital asset world, originating from an investor GameKyuubi. He declared “I AM HOLDING” on the forum after the price fell by about 40% in 2013, mistakenly spelling hold as hodl. People in the digital asset industry often use this term to indicate that they will continue to hold positions no matter the situation, which is somewhat similar to the diamond hands introduced above. Hodl was later given the meaning of Hold On for Dear Life.

6.LFG

LFG (Let's fucking go!) can be understood as “BuyBuyBuy,” which is often used to express excitement about the launch of new projects and NFT news.

7.Moon

Moon is also a frequently used market term in the NFT field. Going to the moonmooning refers to a significant increase in asset value. No specific definition of the increase has been made yet, but for the digital asset world, which has seen Bitcoin rise from $1 to $6, a 10% increase is certainly not worth mentioning.

8.Ser

Ser evolved from sir, often ironically. In other words, don't take it seriously if someone uses ser in a sentence.

9.Wen

When is a misspelling often used by the NFT and digital asset community to express irony？ For example, “When moon？” can be understood as “When will the price of this asset surge？”