Picture this: You’re at a party, one of those get-togethers where bitcoin’s coolest and richest players hang out. You want someone to back your idea for a new blockchain-based slam poetry collective because it’s going to change the world, but you have to convince the right people.

Someone looks poker-faced at you and says, “That’s totally rekt. I’d invest maybe a Sat in that.”

Should you punch him or shake his hand?

You might know your Merkle tree from your multi-sigs, but that’s not the only thing you have to worry about when you’re trying to pass as a crypto insider.

There’s a secret lingo of memes, acronyms and nicknames that you won’t find in any technical guide and this strange vernacular underpins the modern crypto community. If you don’t know your bearwhales from your bagholders, you might find yourself on the outside looking in.

Here’s our guide to fitting in.

1. Bearwhale

A bear is a term for someone who thinks that a market is heading downward, and aims to benefit from that decline, often by shorting prices. A whale is a term for someone that holds a large amount of assets, in this case cryptocurrency.

Putting those two financial animals together makes a bearwhale, a creature that came about in October 2014 when one bitcoin investor sold 30,000 bitcoins for $300 each in a market megadump.

The sale priced bitcoin far below its market value at the time, leading to a dip in prices as bitcoiners struggled to swallow the glut and raise the price back to prior levels – which they eventually did.

Image source: Bitcoincharts

Two and a half years later, the bearwhale explained these actions, saying that they had sided with those who lobbied for a larger block size during the block size debate and had lost faith in bitcoin as a result. However, they were now back on board.

“I am the BearWhale: I sold Bitcoin for the wrong reasons, and now I am all-in and long bitcoin again,” the message concluded.

Yet, with 1000 whales holding about 40 percent of the bitcoin, all it would take to bring about another bearwhale would be for one of them to sell off their holdings at sub-market prices. They could even club together.

EG: “Roger Ver just formed a pod of bearwhales with five other large bitcoin holders! Flee! Run for your lives!”

2. Flippening

The point at which one cryptocurrency overtakes another in its market capitalization (the total value of all coins in circulation). Originally, it was used to describe ethereum possibly overtaking bitcoin as the top cryptocurrency.

According to Flippening Watch, a site dedicated to watching the two markets, we got closest in June 2017 when ethereum’s market cap was $33.4 billion and bitcoin’s was $40.5 billion, but there was no breakthrough.

Image source: Flippening Watch

While this Flippening hasn’t happened yet, if it did, many believe it would be a powerful psychological signal that bitcoin had fallen out of favor with a good number of investors and more believed in the innovations another cryptocurrency provides.

EG: “Worship ye not the false bitcoin gods, for when the bearwhales cometh and the great Flippening occurs, only the crypto righteous shall ascendeth to the moon.”

3. HODL

One of the longest standing bitcoin-specific words, hodl is a term meaning to buy and hold cryptocurrency rather than trying to time volatile market conditions,

First coined in 2013 by a poster on Bitcoin Talk who had downed a little too much whiskey, ‘GameKyuubi’ typed “I AM HODLING” instead of “I am holding.”

It was an instant meme and is now part of the bitcoin vernacular, as illustrated by the 132 pages of comments the post received since.

HODLing has now become a rallying cry against emotional investing. Hodlers pride themselves on ignoring downturns in cryptocurrency markets. It’s become a clear sign of faith in an asset’s long-term viability. There is even a HODLer’s manifesto. Many HODLers envisage a mooning cryptocurrency further down the line.

EG: “Don’t let the bearwhale spook you. HODL and ride out the Flippening.”

4. Hyperbitcoinization

Image source: Wikipedia (Bundesarchiv, Bild 183-R1215-506 / CC-BY-SA 3.0)

In some ways the ultimate flippening, this is an event where bitcoin replaces a fiat currency to become the prevailing form of monetary exchange.

The theory goes that a currency in a nation facing problems such as hyperinflation, making it unsuitable as a store of value or a means of exchange, could give way to bitcoin as the population looks for a more reliable alternative.

Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey has even suggested that bitcoin could become the single global currency within a decade.

When Greece dealt with an economic crisis that saw banks close down to prevent the financial system from collapsing amid panic in the summer of 2015, bitcoin exchanges reported that they had seen a marked increase in the number of accounts being opened by Greek citizens.

And we’re already seeing foreshadowings of something similar in Venezuela, where hyperinflation has left people there scurrying for bitcoin as a safer alternative to the floundering bolívar.

EG: “The bearwhale is slain! The Flippening has reverted! HODLers rejoice. USD just collapsed and the U.S. is in a state of hyperbitcoinization.”

5. Mooning

A verbalization of the phrase “to the moon.” Its origin lies in the 1950s, with Jackie Gleason’s character Ralph Kramden in the sitcom “The Honeymooners.” Kramden would always threaten to beat his wife Alice, with the catchphrase “You’re going to the moon!”

Bitcoiners and other cryptocurrency users adopted the phrase, scrubbed it of its misogynistic roots and reclaimed it. Today, it is a cryptocurrency advocate’s way of saying that the coin’s price will eventually soar. If a currency is mooning, then it is on a seemingly unstoppable upward trajectory.

Some have taken mooning to extremes. Dogecoin managed to actually get a coin to the moon by working with the LunarXPrize context that sent vessels into space:

Image source: Dogecoin

Some bitcoin advocates find mooning inspiration in the most unlikely places:

Image source: Imgur

Today, enthusiasts of all different types of cryptocurrencies use the phrase for their respective investments.

EG: “Don’t let the Bearwhale scare you away. The Flippening is a daydream. Hyperbitcoinization will happen soon, and bitcoin will moon. HODL your coins and hang in there.”

6. Nocoiner

A nocoiner is a cynic about the whole cryptocurrency concept and refuses to hold any cryptocurrency assets at all.

Look for these common arguments from nocoiners: “It’s all a Ponzi scheme,” “I don’t understand how it has any real value,” and “Didn’t a hacker steal all of the coins anyway?”

EG: “You prefer keeping all your money in the bank because it’s safe and you’re worried about the Flippening? Remember the 2008 financial crisis, you nocoiner. The Bearwhale was a one off, and hyperbitcoinization is going to moon bitcoin and wipe out your funds. ”

7. Sats

Short for Satoshis, this is the smallest possible unit of bitcoin, equalling 0.00000001 or one-hundred-millionth of a bitcoin. Bitcoin’s creator had already identified this as the smallest possible division of a bitcoin, but it didn’t have a name when they launched the cryptocurrency in early 2009.

In 2010, a Bitcoin Talk user suggested that a hundredth of a bitcoin be called a Satoshi. Eventually, though, he settled on naming the smaller unit after Satoshi.

Sats is a useful shorthand when trading fractions of a bitcoin for other far less valuable coins.

EG: “Cyril won’t buy a single Sat. That Bearwhale incident really spooked him, and now he’s worried about the Flippening. What a hopeless nocoiner. I told him to HODL because hyperbitcoinization is coming, but he won’t. He’ll be sorry when bitcoin moons.”

8. When Lambo?

Lambo is short for Lamborghini, the Italian sports car, that became the go-to car for bitcoiners after news stories appeared about bitcoin millionaires sporting their riches by buying the luxury car. It led to the phrase “when lambo?” meaning “when will you be able to afford a Lamborghini with your coins?”

There are now websites dedicated to calculating when Lambo, like When Lambo and Crypto-to-Lambo.

EG: “Forget that Bearwhale! He failed to cause the Flippening and now the HODLers are winning. The Fed just declared bitcoin the national currency and hyperbitcoinization is here. Bitcoin is mooning, my Sats are soaring and all the nocoiners are crying. When Lambo? Now Lambo!”

9. Bagholder

In modern financial circles, a bagholder means to be left holding the bag, a term which itself dates to the 18th century, meaning to be cheated or swindled.

In finance, a bagholder is a person on the wrong side of a transaction after all the smart money has left. In the cryptocurrency space, the bagholder is the person who buys doomed altcoins in expectation of a big win.

EG: “Jeffrey bought $5000 in bitcoin at $10,000 each but it didn’t moon like he expected. Some bearwhale came in and caused the Flippening. Now the price has tanked, and he’s a total bagholder. But he’s hanging in there and HODLing his Sats as he waits for hyperbitcoinization.”

10. DYOR

Short for “do your own research,” this is a term that limits liability by reminding people that they should look into something themselves before acting on anything someone else says.

It’s a common term in cryptocurrency because of the fast-moving, technically complex nature of the sector and the likelihood that mistakes could be costly.

People also use it in response to someone else who is asking about a coin, on the basis that they could read the white paper and investigate the founders themselves. Related to GIYF (Google Is Your Friend) but more commonly-used in crypto circles.

EG “That Bearwhale had a total DYOR fail. He thought the Flippening was real, but he sold before hyperbitcoinization and now he’s a total nocoiner bagholder. He should have HODLd his Sats until bitcoin mooned. No Lambo for him!”.

11. FOMO

FOMO, or the fear of missing out, is rampant in the cryptocurrency world, but predates it by several years.

First coined by Patrick J. McGinnis, author of “The 10% Entrepreneur,” described it as far back as 2004 in a piece for The Harbus. The Harvard Business School newsletter, called Social Theory at HBS: McGinnis’ Two FOs. In it, he describes someone who tries to attend every possible social event, spreading themselves ridiculously thin, for fear of missing out on a good time somewhere.

Since then, it has come to describe any situation where someone is eager to be involved lest they lose some advantage that the rest of the crowd is getting. FOMO in the crypto space means investing in what looks like a promising cryptocurrency for fear of losing out later, and is a symptom of emotional investing.

FOMO sufferers can fall into the trap of constantly transferring their funds from one coin to another so that they don’t miss out on the next big thing. Being guided by the heart rather than the head like this creates more risk. FOMO is the antithesis of HODLing.

EG: “This Bearwhale incident has me worried about the Flippening. I don’t want to HODL anymore if all I’ll be left with are a few Sats. I don’t want become a nocoiner, though. This altcoin I heard about looks like a sure bet, and after some healthy DYOR I’m filled with FOMO. When Lambo? Oh, wait a minute, though, someone just mentioned hyperbitcoinization. Maybe I should buy bitcoin again to avoid becoming the bagholder.”

12. FUD

This term – an acronym for fear, uncertainty and doubt – is closely linked to the computing industry.

When computing entrepreneur Gene Amdahl left IBM to found his Amdahl computer company in the mid-1970s, he used it to describe IBM’s disinformation campaign, in which it tried to persuade users to go with its safer option.

Since then, it has come to describe the deliberate spreading of negative fact and opinion about a target. It’s commonly used in information warfare to subvert trust in an enemy’s ideas and a common tactic in the intelligence and commercial worlds alike.

Bitcoin and the broader cryptocurrency world have taken a liking to the phrase, and point to anything – whether it be journalism, academic or otherwise – that isn’t completely optimistic (and as such, able to keep prices going up) as FUD.

EG: “I read that bitcoin is secretly run by the NSA as a way to sucker in all the crypto anarchists. The Bearwhale and the Flippening are all just tricks to scare the HODLers, encourage FOMO, and avoid hyperbitcoinization. They’re going to pull the plug, and all you bagholders are going to be left with nothing but a few Sats.”

“Oh DYOR Donnie, you nocoiner. That’s total FUD. Bitcoin is mooning, and I’m looking forward to Lambo.”

13. REKT

This misspelling is short for “wrecked.”

Knowyourmemes explains that the term gained traction in early 2014 after someone referenced it while planning a Halloween prank:

This Halloween I’m going to open the door with a bowl full of candy, eat a piece in front of the kids, and then close the door. Get reKt

— Seamus ╘[◉﹃◉]╕ (@SSoHPKC) October 31, 2013

It has since gained widespread usage. Case in point, a YouTube channel created in 2017 under the moniker REKT – which films videos of people breaking things – has gained over a million subscribers.

In cryptocurrency, REKT is used when an asset’s value is decreasing, usually substantially. As such, it’s effectively the opposite of mooning.

EG: “After the Bearwhale spawned the Flippening, I decided not to HODL my bitcoins anymore. That was unfortunate, because the hyperbitoinization caused bitcoin to moon, and nocoiners like me had no Sats to spare. No Lambo for this bagholder. Luckily, I bounced back with some solid DYOR, avoiding FOMO and FUD, and avoided getting completely rekt in the end.”