With bitcoin all the buzz, if you’re not in IT, you likely are finding yourself a bit confused by the vocabulary of blockchain and fintech. Because this new language can be challenging – but will be in Webster’s before you know it - we’ve put together a guide that decrypts cryptocurrency’s language, making it easier to know what so say the next time someone asks you if you want to go mining for bitcoins.

To make it less complex from the jump, let’s begin with cryptocurrency, which a digital form of currency regulated through encryption codes that allow funds to be transferred outside the limits of a banking transaction. Because the codes are private and encrypted – and become blocked as soon as someone uses it – transactions are considered safe from hacking or theft.

Some other words to know to be in-the-know:

Blockchain. Blockchain is a digital ledger on a database shared by a network of computers throughout the world that work together in real time to not only record, but also store all the transactions occurring throughout the network, connecting each transaction (called a block) with a digital link. All the transactions are recorded, but because there is not one single owner of the computer network, and they are spread out across the world, blockchain erases the need for a financial institution.

Cryptography. Cryptography is the process of building cryptocurrencies, using math rather than humans to ensure secure communication. Because of the machine-generated encryption, bitcoin addresses are considered enormously safe.

Exchange. An exchange is an online place where buyers and sellers can trade bitcoins or other cryptocurrencies. Bitcoin transactions are peer-to-peer, and process on the Bitcoin Network, which manages the blockchain.

FOMO. Fear of missing out. The idea that someone else might be on the cutting edge of something big is one that can trigger a serious case of FOMO. If Bitcoin seems within your reach, however, invest, go mining or consider some of the competitors, including Ethereum.

Fork. A fork is a split from the blockchain, which creates two blockchains. Fork can be deliberate or the result of incompatible software. A deliberate change is called a hard fork, and could include a form of cryptocurrency that branched off another, yielding the equivalent of a counterfeit cryptocurrency.

FUD. Fear, uncertainty and doubt. Similar to gaslighting, FUD is what happens when those on one side of an organization, mission or idea spread “fake news” to the other with the sole purpose to undermine any confidence that could propel the project forward. If is especially proactive in cryptocurrency, the value of which can change on a time on a daily basis, causing those who were unsure to become even more wary.

Halving. Bitcoins are considered valuable because they are available in a fixed supply of just 21 million, a number determined by the technology behind the digital currency. Because the supple is limited, it generates a demand. A certain number of bitcoins are released every four years, although with each four-year passing, the number of bitcoins generated per block is cut by 50 percent, a process called halving. The process will end in 2140.

Hardware Wallet. A hardware wallet is an electronic device that stores bitcoin. Wallets can be hot, which means they have an active connection to the internet and should hold only small amounts of bitcoin keys, or cold, which keeps private keys to bitcoins in offline storage such a USB stick or in a paper wallet that contains the private keys. Generating the paper code erases all evidence of the key from its computer of origin.

HODL. Bitcoin prices are crashing and soaring, soaring and crashing, causing investors to consider when might be the best time to dump the cryptocurrency. Financial advisors suggested holding the cryptocurrency, but instead of saying hold, they printed a typo, and then to look less inept with PR, turned it into a catchphrase to encourage investors to keep their bitcoins. “Hodl.”

Miner. Miners are in place to prevent cryptocurrency from being abused, and they are able to build a block and add it to the blockchain, potentially earning bitcoins as part of the process.

Proof of stake. A person can mine for bitcoins or create blocks based on how many coins he or she has. The more cryptocurrency wealth, the higher the cryptocurrency power.

Satoshi. This is the smallest Bitcoin available, and was named after the creator of Bitcoin. A single bitcoin contains 100 million satoshis.

Satoshi Nakamoto. This is the international entity of mystery behind Bitcoin. In 2008, a paper published under Satoshi Nakamoto’s name described digital currency for the first time. The first Bitcoin software was released, launching the network, and the first cryptocurrency, called bitcoins, were released.