Are you new to the crypto world and feeling overwhelmed by a bunch of unfamiliar abbreviations? I understand. Today, I want to share 28 popular slang terms you need to know so you don’t get lost in the community.

Let’s start with the basics. Aping is when you buy a token right after it launches without doing any research — kind of like following the crowd. Conversely, if you are a bagholder, it means you’re holding tokens whose prices are plummeting but you’re still holding on in hopes of a rebound.

There’s a group called Bitcoin maximalists — they believe that only Bitcoin has real value, and other coins are just fictional. But that’s just their opinion.

When you see prices dropping, you have two options. First is BTD — buy the dip, meaning buying when prices are low. Second, you might be subject to cryptojacking, a type of cyberattack where hackers exploit your computer to mine cryptocurrency without your knowledge.

Talking about people, there’s a type called cryptosis — these folks keep talking about crypto all the time, listening and listening, never seeming to get tired.

Now, let’s discuss trading psychology. Diamond hands are resilient traders who hold onto tokens even when prices are crashing. Paper hands, on the other hand, sell at the slightest market wind. Both have their pros and cons.

That’s why everyone always reminds you to DYOR — do your own research. Never follow anyone blindly.

Flippening is an interesting concept — it describes a hypothetical situation where Ethereum surpasses Bitcoin to become the largest market cap coin. Similarly, flappening is when Litecoin overtakes Bitcoin Cash.

FOMO — fear of missing out — is the fear of missing a chance to make money. This emotion often causes people to make hasty decisions and suffer losses. Conversely, FUD — fear, uncertainty, doubt — is when negative information (which may be true or false) is spread to cause panic selling.

In the crypto community, GM is a morning greeting people often use to create a positive vibe. You tweet GM, others reply GM, forming a chain of GM throughout the morning.

HODL is one of the most loved terms. It started as a typo of “hold,” but later was understood as “hold on for dear life.” It refers to a long-term buy-and-hold strategy, refusing to sell regardless of price movements.

IYKYK stands for “if you know, you know” — used when you want to refer to something only insiders understand. And what about LFG? LFG means “let’s f-ing go,” an expression of excitement or enthusiasm about a project. You’ll often hear LFG when there’s good news or when the community wants to build momentum for a coin.

Moon or mooning refers to a coin’s price skyrocketing. Conversely, if you’re NGMI — not gonna make it — it’s a prediction that you’ll fail. But the community prefers to use WAGMI — we’re all gonna make it — to motivate each other.

No-coiner describes someone who criticizes crypto very harshly and owns no coins at all. Normie is an ordinary person who doesn’t know much about crypto.

Pump and dump is a classic scam. A group buys a large amount of coins at low prices, then promotes it to inflate the price, and finally sells all (dump) to make a profit, leaving late buyers to suffer losses.

REKT means being wrecked — experiencing significant losses on a trade. Rug pull is another scam where developers abandon a project, take all the funds, and leave investors with worthless coins.

Sats is short for Satoshis, the smallest unit of Bitcoin. Like cents for dollars, Bitcoin has Sats. 1 Bitcoin equals 100 million Sats.

Shilling is when someone gets paid to promote a coin or token. Vaporware refers to blockchain projects that exist only on paper, with no real product yet.

Weak hands are those who sell coins when prices start to fall. Conversely, whales are individuals or organizations holding large amounts of coins, enough to influence the market. A related term is bear whale — a whale that tends to push prices down.

Finally, when Lambo or wen Lambo is an ironic question asking when you’ll be rich enough to buy a Lamborghini. It mocks those who focus solely on coin prices and forget the real purpose.

These are the most common terms you’ll encounter in the crypto community. Understanding these words will help you communicate better and avoid getting lost in discussions. Remember to always DYOR before investing in any project.