The crypto glossary.
Sixteen essential crypto terms, explained plainly and linked to practical reading.
Account
A record in a blockchain’s state. Its structure and permissions depend on the network. Read the guide →
Block explorer
A service for inspecting indexed blockchain records. Its labels and displays are interpretations, not a substitute for the underlying record. Read the guide →
Contract address
The network-specific identifier of a deployed smart contract. Similar names do not establish the same identity. Read the guide →
Data freshness
How recently an observation was measured or updated relative to the decision that uses it. Read the guide →
Digital signature
Cryptographic evidence that a message was signed by the corresponding key. It does not independently establish the truth of the message. Read the guide →
Hash
A fixed-length digest of data. Comparing hashes can detect a change in the encoded data. Read the guide →
Liquidity
The capacity to exchange assets at available prices. Depth, range and trade size matter, not only a dollar total. Read the guide →
Node
Software that participates in a network by storing, checking or relaying data, according to its role. Read the guide →
OHLC
Open, high, low and close prices for a stated market and interval. A candle does not reveal the full order of trades inside it. Read the guide →
Oracle
A mechanism that makes external observations available to an application or contract. Its update policy is part of its trust model. Read the guide →
RPC
Remote procedure call: a way for an application to ask a node provider for information or submit a request. Read the guide →
Rollup
A scaling approach that executes transactions outside a base layer and publishes data or commitments with a defined verification system. Read the guide →
SLO
Service-level objective: a defined target for a measured service characteristic over a stated window. Read the guide →
Token unlock
A scheduled or conditional release of previously restricted tokens. Unlocking does not itself prove that a sale occurred. Read the guide →
UTXO
An unspent transaction output. In Bitcoin, transactions consume eligible outputs and create new ones, including change where needed. Read the guide →
Wallet
Software or hardware used to manage keys and interact with a network. It does not contain the blockchain assets as physical objects. Read the guide →