Start here for the essentials. Scroll down for the full, detailed glossary.
Software or a hardware device that manages your keys. Coins stay on the blockchain; the wallet controls access to them.
Why: Whoever controls the keys controls the coins. Use a hardware wallet for savings.
Shareable destination for receiving funds, derived from your public key (e.g., bech32: bc1…).
Why: Typos burn funds. Verify the first/last 6–8 characters; prefer QR when possible.
Secret used to sign transactions. Usually backed up via a 12–24 word seed phrase.
Why: If exposed, funds can be stolen. Never share; never type your seed on random sites.
A batch of validated transactions plus a header linking to the previous block.
Why: Blocks extend the chain and include the coinbase reward to miners.
Deterministic digital fingerprint of data; tiny input changes create wildly different outputs.
Why: Enables tamper‑evidence and links blocks together securely.
Computers search for a block header hash below a target. The winner adds the next block and earns rewards.
Why: Mining anchors security with real‑world cost (work).
How hard it is to find a valid block. Networks retarget to keep average time between blocks steady.
Why: Stabilizes issuance and confirmation cadence despite hashrate changes.
The number of blocks built on top of the block containing your transaction.
Why: More confirms = safer. Typical: 1–2 small, 3–6 medium; large transfers use stricter policies.
An incentive paid to miners to include your transaction, usually based on size and network demand.
Why: Higher fee → faster inclusion when mempools are busy; low demand → cheaper confirms.
A 12–24 word backup that can recreate all your wallet’s private keys (BIP‑39).
Why: This is the master key. Store offline, never share; losing it means losing funds.