My First Month I Read Articles with a Glossary Open in Another Tab
I have been trading since 2018. The first month in crypto is a constant "what does this word mean?" HODL, FOMO, gas, staking — every article a new term. This is the glossary I wished I had: 30 essential terms in plain English, with real trading examples rather than dry Wikipedia definitions.
Ready for Practice
After the glossary — create an account on Bybit and see these terms in a real interface.
Basic Terms
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| HODL | Holding an asset long-term regardless of price swings (from a misspelled "hold" that became a meme) |
| FOMO | "Fear Of Missing Out" — impulsive buying when an asset is rapidly rising in price |
| FUD | "Fear, Uncertainty, Doubt" — negative news/rumours triggering panic selling |
| ATH / ATL | All-Time High/Low — the historical maximum/minimum price |
| Altcoin | Any cryptocurrency other than Bitcoin (ETH, SOL, ADA, etc.) |
| Whale | A participant with a very large balance whose trades can move the price |
Trading Terms
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| Spot | Buying/selling an asset with real money for immediate ownership — details here |
| Leverage | Borrowed funds to increase position size (2x, 10x, 100x) |
| Liquidation | Forced closure of a position by the exchange at a critical loss — the deposit is lost entirely |
| Long / Short | Long — betting on a price increase. Short — betting on a price decrease |
| Maker / Taker | Maker — places an order that waits to be filled (usually lower fee). Taker — fills an existing order instantly |
| Funding rate | A periodic payment between longs and shorts on perpetual futures — keeps the contract price aligned with the market |
| Margin call | An exchange warning that a position is close to liquidation — add funds or reduce the position |
Blockchain Terms
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| Blockchain | A public transaction ledger, copies of which are held on thousands of computers — details here |
| Gas | The fee for executing a transaction on a network (especially Ethereum), paid in the network's native token |
| Wallet | An app/device storing the access keys to cryptocurrency on the blockchain |
| Private key / Seed phrase | The "password" to a wallet. Loss = permanent loss of access — details here |
| Staking | Locking coins in a network to earn rewards (similar to an interest-bearing deposit) |
| Smart contract | A blockchain program that automatically executes agreement terms without intermediaries |
| DeFi | Decentralised finance — financial services (lending, exchange) without intermediaries, via smart contracts |
| NFT | A unique digital token proving ownership of a specific item (image, in-game asset, etc.) |
Exchange Terms
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| KYC | "Know Your Customer" — identity verification (passport + selfie) for full functionality |
| P2P | A direct trade between users via the exchange's escrow — the main way to exchange fiat↔crypto |
| Proof of Reserves (PoR) | Public evidence that an exchange actually holds user funds — details here |
| Copy trading | Automatically copying a chosen trader's trades to your account, proportional to your deposit |
| IEO / Launchpad | Initial Exchange Offering — selling new tokens via an exchange before public listing |
| Stablecoin | A cryptocurrency pegged to fiat (USDT, USDC to the dollar) — details here |
| Swap | Exchanging one crypto asset for another, usually via the spot market or a DEX |
What Is Next
Know the core terms — time for practice. Create an account, make your first purchase, and these words will feel routine after a week of active use.
Have a question about a term not covered here? [email protected] — I reply personally.