Crypto has its own dense vocabulary, and a lot of it gets used without explanation. Here are twenty of the most common terms you'll encounter, defined plainly and linked to deeper explainers where one exists.
Market fundamentals
Market cap — price multiplied by circulating supply; see our full explainer. Trading volume — how much of an asset changed hands over a period. Circulating supply — the number of coins currently in public circulation. Trading pair — two assets priced against each other, like BTC/USDT; see our 2-minute guide.
Price and movement
24H change — the price now versus 24 hours ago; see our explainer. Volatility — how sharply and frequently a price moves. Bull market / bear market — sustained rising or falling price trends; see our cycles explainer. Market breadth — the share of assets rising versus falling; see our full piece.
Market structure
Dominance — one coin's share of total tracked market cap; see our dominance explainer. Altcoin — any cryptocurrency other than Bitcoin. Large cap / mid cap — size categories based on market cap; see our comparison. Stablecoin — a token designed to hold a steady value, typically against the US dollar; see our explainer.
Trading behavior
Whale — a holder large enough to move a market with a single trade; see our piece. Leverage — trading with borrowed capital to amplify a position. Liquidation — the forced closing of a leveraged position; see our explainer. FOMO / FUD — fear of missing out and fear/uncertainty/doubt; see our psychology guide.
Technology terms
Smart contract — self-executing code running on a blockchain. DeFi — decentralized finance built on smart contracts; see our explainer. NFT — a non-fungible token representing a unique digital asset; see our piece. On-chain — any activity recorded directly on a blockchain's public ledger.