October 5, 2022 | Updated on March 5, 2023
Welcome, fellow art enthusiasts and new collectors. Here are important terms you should know to help you better understand and navigate the ever-changing NFT space.
#
1:1 art - A 1:1 (pronounced 1 of 1) is a unique NFT artwork. It only has one single edition as opposed to NFT collections that have more than one. For example, Transient Eternity is a 1:1 while Exploding the Self is not.
10K project - An NFT collection that consists of 10,000 editions of NFT artwork. The number varies depending on each project. For example, Your Daytime Fireworks is a 7K project, meaning it consists of 7,000 editions.
1/1 of X - This term is used when each artwork edition within an NFT collection is unique. For example, if an NFT collection contains 100 editions, and each edition is a unique artwork, then any specific edition within that collection is a 1/1 of 100. This is very different than a 1:1 artwork, because a 1:1 does not belong in a collection.
A
Airdrop - The action of sending an NFT or NFTs to specific wallets, free of charge. An airdrop can occur for many reasons. It may be used as a marketing strategy to pique the interest of new collectors, as a way to garner engagement, and more.
B
Beeple - Artist Mike Winkelmann's pseudonym. His artwork Everydays: the First 5000 Days currently holds the record for the most expensive NFT ever sold at $69.4 million dollars.
Blockchain - A decentralized, permanent, transparent, and publicly accessible ledger of crypto transactions. It can provide the infrastructure of various decentralized applications (DApp), such as NFT marketplaces, decentralized finance (DeFi), games, etc. NFT artworks live on blockchains, giving them permanence and making them verifiable, so people can't just right-click-save your digital collection and call it theirs.
Burn - Burning an NFT artwork essentially means destroying it. In technical terms, it means to remove an NFT from public circulation to an inaccessible crypto wallet address. Because blockchain transactions are immutable, this is the only way to 'destroy' an NFT.
C
Crypto - Short for cryptocurrency, crypto is a digital currency that is secured by cryptography and powered by blockchain networks. It is the type of currency you need to own before purchasing NFT artworks.
Crypto wallet - Software that stores cryptocurrencies such as ETH and enables blockchain transactions. You'll need one before you start collecting NFT artworks. Learn more at https://ethereum.org/en/wallets.
D
DAOs - Short for Decentralized Autonomous Organizations, DAOs are entities with no centralized, top-down leadership. Unlike traditional organizations, DAOs are owned and governed by their community members. You can think of them as a way to work with like-minded people around the world, with each member having an ownership stake in the organization.
DApps - Short for Decentralized Applications, DApps are just like normal apps you can find in Apple and Google's app stores. The only difference is that they are powered by smart contracts and run on blockchains.
Discord - An instant messaging platform. It allows users to communicate via voice calls, video calls, text messages, and file sharing.
Diamond hands - A way to describe collectors who hold onto their NFTs despite market fluctuations.
Drop - Another way to address the initial launch of an NFT collection or project.
Dutch Auction - A type of auction where the bidding price of an NFT artwork starts at the ceiling price and decreases until it reaches the resting price.
DYOR - Short for Do Your Own Research, DYOR is a term used in the NFT space to remind people to always do their research. Scammers are getting smarter by the second, and it is imperative to properly research a project to avoid getting scammed.
E
ERC-721 vs ERC-1155 - Two standard forms of tokens that permit NFT minting and are most widely accepted in Ethereum. Different token standards will be used depending on various project needs.
ERC-721 - The gold standard for “non-fungible” tokens. ERC-721 tokens are unique, immutable, and indivisible.
ERC-1155 - The standard that supports both “non-fungible” and “fungible” tokens. An ERC-1155 token allows you to deploy multiple token kinds under a single smart contract. It also supports batch transfers, meaning that if you want to transfer 10 artworks you can do it in one-go.
Ethereum - Currently the main, go-to blockchain network for NFT art. It also hosts a large cryptocurrency ecosystem. Learn more at https://ethereum.org.
ETH - Short for Ether, ETH is Ethereum's native cryptocurrency used to purchase NFT artworks.
F
FOMO - Short for Fear Of Missing Out. FOMO is a term to describe the emotion that collectors feel in missing out on an exclusive artwork launch or event. tics.
Fungibility - Used to describe things that are interchangable, such as a dollar bill because it can be interchanged by other existing dollar bills.
FUD - Short for Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt, FUD is a term to describe negative sentiment.
G
Gas fees - These are mandatory fees you need to pay in order to interact with a blockchain transaction. Gas fees are used to compensate for the incurred computational resources on a blockchain. Depending on what blockchain and how busy the network is, gas fees will vary. It is most akin to a traditional transaction fee.
Generative art - Art that is generated by machine algorithms. The algorithms will factor in different inputs set by the creator and create unique works of art based on those inputs.
GM/GN - Short for Good Morning/Goodnight. They are often used as greetings in the NFT space.
I
InterPlanetary File System (IPFS) - A P2P file sharing system that stores NFT data. IPFS can store and access files, applications, websites, and more. It is a more reliable option than an HTTP gateway URL because it is not tied to a specific provider. As long as someone on the network is hosting a specific piece of content, you can find it via an IPFS address.
IRL - Short for In Real Life, IRL literally means the physical world you live in. When your online friend says "let's meet IRL", he/she means to physically meet you somewhere face-to-face.
L
Limited Edition - In the NFT world, a limited edition NFT artwork means that the artwork has a predefined number of editions. Take Exploding the Self for example. It is a limited edition NFT artwork with 99 editions.
M
Marketplace - NFT marketplaces are platforms where you can buy, sell, display, store, and mint NFTs. These marketplaces are equivalent to what e-commerce websites are to consumer goods.
Metadata - The set of data that provides information about certain NFTs. An NFT artwork's metadata describes that NFT's ownership properties, like name, description, and other information deemed important by the creator.
MetaMask - The most widely used crypto wallet for NFT collectors.
Metaverse - A virtual world where people can meet and interact. Many NFT collectors display their collections in metaverse museums.
Minting - The process when digital files get stored on the blockchain to become NFTs. Once the files are put on the blockchain, they can no longer be altered.
N
NFT - Short for Non-Fungible-Token, NFT is an indivisible and incommutable, one-of-a-kind unit of data. Protected by blockchain and smart contract technology, each NFT can only be owned by one entity at a time. NFTs are widely used as proof of ownership of unique assets, such as fine art and other collectibles. Learn more about NFTs here.
NGMI - Short for Not Gonna Make It, NGMI is used in a self-deprecating way to address one's personal bad decisions.
O
Off-chain metadata - Metadata that is not stored on the blockchain.
On-chain metadata - Metadata that is included in a smart contract stored directly on the blockchain.
Open Edition - An open edition NFT artwork is when there is an unlimited number of NFTs available during a mint. The only limit is how long the minting process goes on. During this time, collectors can mint as many NFTs as they want.
OpenSea - The largest marketplace for NFTs.
P
Paper hands - A way to describe risk-averse collectors who sell their NFTs due to market fluctuations.
PFP - Short for Profile Picture, a PFP project is an NFT project where the artwork can be readily used as a collector's profile picture. You can now set NFTs as your Twitter profile picture.
Polygon - An Ethereum-compatible blockchain alternative. Polygon is a popular platform for collectible NFTs because it provides cheaper minting costs and has lower gas fees.
Presale - A period where collectors with early access may buy the NFT artworks. Presale takes place before a public sale.
Primary marketplace - The marketplace where artists may list their NFT artworks for sale for the first time. TRLab is a primary marketplace. OpenSea functions as both a primary marketplace and a secondary marketplace (see definition below).
Probably nothing - A common phrase which actually means there is "probably something interesting or worth noticing going on". It’s a wink, wink, nudge, nudge moment. The perfect antiphrasis to get people excited about something.
R
Rarity - The rarity of an NFT artwork is largely determined by factoring in the total supply of an NFT collection and variations across a collection. The Your Daytime Fireworks collection can serve as a great example as some NFTs are rarer than others. More information about the traits can be found here.
Roadmap - A visual or document that shows an NFT project's future goals and upcoming drops.
Royalties - One of the key benefits for artists creating NFT artworks. Royalties are money earned by artists through the resale of their art on secondary marketplaces. Each time the NFTs are resold, a percentage of the sale proceeds goes back to the original artist. The royalty percentage varies depending on the marketplace.
S
Secondary marketplace - The marketplace where collectors, who have bought NFT artworks, can resell or relist their NFTs. OpenSea is a secondary marketplace.
Shilling - The act of promoting an NFT artwork or project.
Smart contract - A piece of code running on blockchain that governs the execution of NFTs, and is guaranteed to produce the same result for anyone who runs one. Learn more via https://ethereum.org/en/smart-contracts.
SZN - Szn, or season, means the larger NFT market cycle and current trends.
T
Token - A smart contract that operates within a blockchain network, with a specific function.
U
Utility - You will come across this word in the NFT space. Utility-based NFTs are NFTs with more use cases than just the art. For example, an NFT might also function as an entry ticket to events, grant membership perks, etc.
Unlist - To unlist an NFT artwork is to remove it from a marketplace so that the public cannot buy it from you. You will usually need to pay for gas fees if you delist an NFT.
W
Whitelist/Allowlist - A Whitelist (or Allowlist) is a selected list of collectors who will receive early access to new NFT drops.
Whale - A collector that owns a large amount of NFT artworks and has a large holding of cryptocurrency that can buy large amounts of NFTs.
Web3 - An overarching term to describe a new kind of internet service powered by blockchain technology. Cryptocurrencies and NFTs all belong to the Web3 industry.
WAGMI - Short for We're All Gonna Make It, WAGMI is a term used to express positive sentiment when there is good news and general excitement.
If you’re new to the world of NFTs and need help navigating this ever-changing space, below is a list of useful resources:
Be in the know
Related articles
