Bitcoin glossary: Top 70 – Every blockchain and cryptocurrency phrase you need to know.

21.DYOR

Short for “Do Your Own Research.”

22.Ether

The cryptocurrency mined on the Ethereum blockchain. Ether is second only to bitcoin in marketcap but is a far more used cryptocurrency. Most altcoins are also built off Ethereum and hence are tethered to ether. Most NFTs are also built on Ethereum, which is why ether is the dominant token used in NFT trading. 

23.Ethereum

A blockchain that competes with Bitcoin. It’s designed to take the blockchain technology pioneered by Bitcoin’s developers and utilize it for more sophisticated financial tools, like smart contracts. 

24.Flash loan

Flash loans are a Defi tool that allows for loans without collateral. Flash loans allow you to borrow money to buy an asset, but only if the asset can be bought and the interest paid back within the same block. Imagine buying a $1 million house using a loan, but the loan is only being approved if you already lined up another buyer willing to pay enough for you to pay back the loan plus interest.

These loans use smart contract technology. 

25.FUD

Short for “fear, uncertainty, and doubt.” This can be legitimate, like people airing concerns about a token or NFT project’s security or legitimacy, or tactical, as in an organized movement that encourages people to sell, lowering the price of the asset. 

26.Gas

Gas is the price you’ll pay for using the Ethereum network. Every transaction requires a gas fee, which can vary depending on how overloaded the blockchain is. Prices typically range between $50 to $500 per transaction but can skyrocket during times of heavy network load.

27.Governance token

Governance tokens are cryptocurrencies that give the owner voting rights over the given project. See also: DAO. 

28.GWEI

The cost of gas is expressed by GWEI. As a rough guide, gas will be cheap when gwei is below 50 and expensive when it’s above 100. 

29.HODL

A purposeful misspelling of “hold,” is used to encourage people to hold onto their tokens during a downward price movement. 

30.Layer 1 and Layer 2

If you dabble in cryptocurrencies you’ll hear about Layer 1 and Layer 2 solutions. Layer 1 is the blockchain architecture itself, whereas Layer 2 refers to architecture built on top of the blockchain. 

For instance, take the issue of Ethereum’s high gas costs. An “Ayer 1 solution would be to make the Ethereum blockchain more efficient, such as by adopting Proof-of-Stake protocols. An example of a layer 2 solution is Immutable X, an exchange built on top of Ethereum that uses smart contract technology to allow for gas-free, carbon-neutral trading.