NFT Terms: Lingo every collector should know

Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) have captivated collectors and investors alike around the globe. This continued growth resulted in emerging subcultures, spurring new communities and even terminology to describe people, projects, and behaviors within the realm of NFTs.

If you’re just starting your NFT journey, you may come across industry slang, abbreviations, and intentional misspellings popularized by NFT traders on social media. This glossary breaks down some of these terms to help you understand the lingo around NFTs.

A comprehensive NFT glossary

1:1 Art: 1:1 Art (read as one-of-one) refers to a unique form of digital art in the NFT space, where there is only one copy of the artwork in existence. Unlike editions of art that can have multiple copies, 1:1 Art represents the highest level of rarity, often making it highly sought after by collectors.

10k project: A 10k project typically refers to an NFT collection or project that consists of 10,000 individual NFTs. These projects often have distinct traits and attributes, with each NFT within the collection varying in rarity.

Airdop: An airdrop is a distribution method used by crypto and NFT projects to provide free tokens or NFTs to a group of people. This is often done to reward early supporters, create awareness, or incentivize participation within a community.

Alpha: An alpha encompasses both exclusive information shared among a select group of NFT traders and a phase of early testing and feedback access before an NFT project's public launch.

Allowlist: Also known as a “whitelist,” an allowlist is a list of pre-approved addresses or users who are granted special, early access or privileges within an NFT project before minting.

AMA: AMA is short for “Ask Me Anything.” It refers to an event where creators or project founders invite questions from the community and provide candid responses on social media platforms.

Ape/ape-ing: Ape or to ape on something is slang in the NFT world that means quickly and boldly investing in NFTs without thorough research. On the other hand, “APE” is the ticker for the Ethereum-based ApeCoin of the Bored Ape Yacht Club ecosystem.

Avatar project: An avatar project is an NFT collection centered around creating unique digital avatars or characters. These avatars can be used as profile pictures on social media or in virtual worlds, and they often come with distinct traits and styles.

Axie: An Axie is a playable character in Sky Mavis’ blockchain-based game Axie Infinity. These Axies are NFTs that players collect, breed, and battle with other users and can be bought, sold, and traded.

BAYC: BAYC is the acronym for the NFT collection “Bored Ape Yacht Club,” created by Yuga Labs in 2021. This collection consists of 10,000 apes that have different designs and attributes, making some rare and sought after.

Beeple: Beeple is the pseudonym of Mike Winkelmann, a prominent digital artist in the NFT space, many of which have sold for a record-breaking price at auction.

Blue chips: Blue chip NFTs are considered the most valuable and prestigious assets in the NFT market. They are often from well-established collections or artists, and their value tends to be stable and resilient.

Burn: To burn refers to the act of putting a particular token out of circulation by placing it in an accessible wallet. In the context of NFTs, burning an asset means it could be exchanged for a physical good or as an upgrade to an existing one.

CryptoKitties: CryptoKitties is one of the earliest and most iconic NFT projects. It was launched by Dapper Labs in 2017, with users able to collect, breed, and trade digital cats.

CryptoPunks: CryptoPunks is another pioneering NFT project, especially among users who like using NFTs as profile pictures. The collection features 10,000 unique 24x24 pixel art avatars. 

Crypto collectibles: Crypto collectibles are digital assets, often in the form of NFTs, that represent unique or rare items, characters, or collectible objects in the digital world. They can include anything from virtual pets to in-game items.

Curated NFT marketplace: A curated NFT marketplace is a platform that sells NFTs that have been carefully vetted by a team of experts. These marketplaces aim to showcase high-quality NFTs and provide a trusted environment for buyers and sellers.

Damien Hirst: Damien Hirst is Britain’s wealthiest living artist, with an estimated net worth of $384 million in 2022. The popular artist became known in the NFT space when he revealed that he is a believer in NFTs in 2021. He has released several NFT collections, including “The Currency” and “Great Expectations.”

Degen: Slang for “degenerate.” It is often used to describe someone who engages in high-risk and speculative activities within the cryptocurrency and NFT space. It can also refer to a person who makes bold, sometimes reckless, investment decisions.

Diamond hands: “Diamond hands” describe an investor or NFT holder who demonstrates strong resolve and confidence in their assets. It signifies the ability to hold onto investments despite market volatility rather than selling in response to short-term fluctuations.

Doxxed/Doxed: Doxxed NFTs are those whose founder’s identity is revealed publicly. Projects often do this to gain the trust of their audiences.

ENS: ENS stands for Ethereum Name Service, which offers NFT domain names ending in “.eth.” These domains replace complex Ethereum wallet addresses with user-friendly, personalized names.

ERC-20: ERC-20 is a widely adopted token standard on the Ethereum blockchain. It defines the rules and functionalities for creating fungible tokens, often used for various cryptocurrencies and digital assets.

ERC-721: ERC-721 is an Ethereum token standard specifically designed for NFTs. It enables the creation and management of unique digital assets with distinct properties and ownership.

ERC-1155: ERC-1155 is a versatile token standard that supports the creation of multi-token contracts. It allows for the issuance of both fungible and non-fungible tokens within a single contract, offering flexibility for various blockchain applications.

Ethereum: Ethereum is a leading blockchain platform known for its smart contract capabilities. It serves as the foundation for many NFT projects, enabling the creation, trading, and management of such assets on its decentralized network.

Flip: “Flip” refers to the practice of buying or minting an NFT at a lower price and then quickly selling it on the secondary market for a profit.

Floor price: The “floor price” is the lowest price at which a buyer is willing to purchase an NFT within a particular collection. It often serves as an indicator of a collection’s popularity and can be influenced by project holders to create perceived value.

Fractional NFTs: Fractional NFTs are NFTs that have been divided into smaller, tradable units, allowing multiple people to invest in and share ownership of a single NFT. This enables broader participation in high-value NFTs.

FUD: FUD means “Fear, Uncertainty, Doubt.” It is a term used to describe the spread of negative or misleading information in the NFT and crypto communities, often with the intention of creating fear or doubt about a project or asset.

Gas fees: Gas fees are small charges for processing crypto and NFT transactions on a blockchain.

Gas war: A gas war happens when users compete by offering higher fees to get their blockchain transactions processed faster.

Generative art: This refers to digital artworks created using algorithms and code that enable the automated generation of unique and often one-of-a-kind visuals, which can be tokenized and sold as NFTs.

Gm/gn: Short for “good morning” and “good night.” These abbreviations are commonly used in NFT and crypto communities as casual greetings among members in social media.

HODL: “HODL” is a misspelling of “hold” but became an acronym of its own, meaning “Hold on for Dear Life.” The term is commonly used among traders to promote holding on to assets like NFTs and cryptocurrencies rather than selling them, regardless of market conditions.

JPEG: A “joint photographic experts group”  is a common image file format. In NFTs, it refers to digital files, such as images or artworks, that can be tokenized and sold as NFTs.

Liquidity: Liquidity simply refers to the ability to trade NFTs for cash.

Metaverse: Proponents describe the metaverse as a virtual representation of the physical world, where people are represented by avatars and can interact. This digital world is where NFTs can represent ownership of virtual assets, properties, and experiences.

Metadata: A set of information about an NFT, its creator, date of creation, description, traits, and total supply.

Mint: Minting an NFT means creating a unique, blockchain-based token that represents ownership of a digital asset. It’s the process of turning a digital item into an NFT.

Minting interval: Refers to the time gap between the creation of individual NFTs within a collection. It can vary and affect how frequently new NFTs are made available to the public.

Moon/Mooning: “Moon” or “mooning” is slang describing a significant increase in the value of an NFT or cryptocurrency.

Music NFTs: Music NFTs are non-fungible tokens representing ownership of music-related digital assets, such as songs, albums, concert tickets, or exclusive music experiences. They enable musicians and creators to sell and trade their work in a blockchain-based marketplace.

Non-curated NFT marketplace: Also called “open NFT marketplaces,” these are platforms where anyone can mint, bid, and list NFTs without a selection process or curation by the marketplace.

Open Edition: An open edition NFT is a type of NFT with an unlimited supply, wherein the creator can continue to mint and sell copies of the same NFT. It contrasts with limited editions, which have a fixed number of copies.

OpenSea: OpenSea is one of the largest and most popular online marketplaces for buying, selling, and trading NFTs, launched in 2017. It’s a type of non-curated NFT marketplace.

PFP: Stands for “profile picture.” It refers to NFTs used as profile pictures on social media.

Play-to-earn: Play-to-earn or P2E is a blockchain gaming model in which NFTs represent in-game assets.

RTFKT: Pronounced “artifact,” RTFKT is a London-based brand known for its digital fashion products and NFT PFPs, including its sneaker NFTs and CloneX. In 2021, sports apparel giant Nike bought the platform.

Rug Pull: Rug pull is a scam where a cryptocurrency or NFT developer abandons the project after attracting investments or buyers.

Royalties: In the NFT world, these are contractual fees paid to the original creator or rights holder of an NFT whenever it is resold or transferred to a new owner. These royalties are usually a percentage of the resale price and provide ongoing compensation to the creator for their work.

Smart contract: In NFTs, smart contracts automate the creation, transfer, and execution of NFTs, ensuring their authenticity and ownership.

Snag: “Snag” is a term used when someone successfully purchases or acquires an NFT, often indicating they secured a highly sought-after or desirable item.

Snipe/Sniping: NFT sniping is the practice of finding undervalued NFTs whose actual price differs from their real value.

Soulbound tokens: Soulbound tokens are NFTs that are permanently tied to their original owner and cannot be transferred or resold. They are often used in gaming to ensure certain items stay with the character who earned or acquired them.

SuperRare: SuperRare is also one of the prominent NFT marketplaces launched in 2018. It’s a type of curated NFT marketplace.

Traits: Refer to the specific characteristics or attributes that make an NFT unique. These traits can include visual features, metadata, rarity levels, or other defining properties that distinguish one NFT from another.

Tokenize: Tokenize means to convert a real-world, tangible asset into digital form. 

Utility NFTs: Utility NFTs are non-fungible tokens designed to serve a specific function or purpose beyond ownership. They offer real-world perks or experiences.

WAGMI: Stands for “We’re All Going to Make It.” It is an optimistic term used in the NFT space, meaning a project or community will be successful. Contrarily, “NGMI” is short for “Not Going to Make It.”

Wash trading: The buying and selling of the same NFT to create artificial trading activity or inflate trading volumes to attract attention or manipulate prices.

Wearable NFTs: Wearable NFTs are digital collectibles that represent virtual clothing, accessories, or items for use by avatars or characters in virtual worlds, games, or the metaverse.

Web3: A vision of the internet where blockchain technology, decentralized applications (dApps), and NFTs play a central role in creating a more decentralized, user-centric, and interconnected online ecosystem.

White paper: A document that outlines the goals, technology, features, and plans for a particular NFT project or cryptocurrency.

This glossary was curated on September 14, 2023.