Glossary

Common Web3 and Civra terms explained.

General Terms

Web3

The decentralized internet built on blockchain technology, enabling peer-to-peer interactions without intermediaries.

dApp

Decentralized Application - an application that runs on a blockchain network rather than centralized servers.

Blockchain

A distributed ledger technology that records transactions across a network of computers.

Smart Contract

Self-executing code on the blockchain that automatically enforces agreements.

Wallet Terms

Wallet

A tool for storing and managing cryptocurrency and NFTs. Can be software (MetaMask) or hardware (Ledger).

Private Key

A secret code that proves ownership of a wallet. Never share this!

Public Key

Your wallet's address that others can use to send you assets.

Seed Phrase

12 or 24 words that can recover your wallet. Keep this extremely safe!

MetaMask

A popular browser extension wallet for Ethereum and EVM chains.

Transaction Terms

Gas

A fee paid to process transactions on the blockchain.

Gas Price

The amount you pay per unit of gas, measured in Gwei.

Gwei

A denomination of ETH. 1 ETH = 1,000,000,000 Gwei.

Transaction Hash (TxHash)

A unique identifier for a blockchain transaction.

Block

A collection of transactions bundled together on the blockchain.

Confirmation

When a transaction is included in a block. More confirmations = more secure.

Token Standards

ERC-20

Standard for fungible tokens (like currencies).

ERC-721

Standard for non-fungible tokens (NFTs).

ERC-1155

Standard for managing multiple token types in one contract.

ERC-2981

Standard for NFT royalties.

DeFi Terms

DeFi

Decentralized Finance - financial services built on blockchain.

Liquidity Pool

A collection of funds locked in a smart contract for trading.

Staking

Locking tokens to earn rewards or participate in network validation.

Yield Farming

Earning rewards by providing liquidity to DeFi protocols.

APY

Annual Percentage Yield - the yearly return on staked assets.

TVL

Total Value Locked - the total amount of assets in a DeFi protocol.

DEX

Decentralized Exchange - a platform for trading tokens without intermediaries.

AMM

Automated Market Maker - algorithm that prices assets in a DEX.

NFT Terms

NFT

Non-Fungible Token - a unique digital asset on the blockchain.

Mint

Creating a new NFT or token.

Metadata

Information about an NFT (name, image, properties).

IPFS

InterPlanetary File System - decentralized storage for NFT files.

Royalty

Percentage paid to creators on secondary NFT sales.

Collection

A group of related NFTs from the same contract.

Floor Price

The lowest price for an NFT in a collection.

DAO Terms

DAO

Decentralized Autonomous Organization - community-governed organization.

Governance Token

Token that gives holders voting rights in a DAO.

Proposal

A suggested change or action for DAO members to vote on.

Quorum

Minimum number of votes needed for a proposal to pass.

Treasury

Pool of funds controlled by the DAO.

Network Terms

Mainnet

The main blockchain network where real transactions occur.

Testnet

A test blockchain network for development (Sepolia, Mumbai).

Layer 1

Base blockchain (Ethereum, Bitcoin).

Layer 2

Scaling solution built on top of Layer 1 (Polygon, Optimism).

EVM

Ethereum Virtual Machine - executes smart contracts.

RPC

Remote Procedure Call - connection to blockchain nodes.

Security Terms

Multi-Sig

Wallet requiring multiple signatures to execute transactions.

Time Lock

Delay before an action can be executed.

Audit

Security review of smart contract code.

Reentrancy

Attack where a function is called multiple times before completing.

Front-Running

When someone sees your transaction and submits their own first.

Civra-Specific Terms

AI Agent

Intelligent assistant that helps build Web3 applications.

Credits

Usage units for Civra's AI features and deployments.

Template

Pre-built project structure for common dApp types.

Prompt

Instructions given to Civra's AI to generate code.

Integration

Connection to external services (Stripe, IPFS, etc.).

Workspace

Shared environment for team collaboration.

Development Terms

Solidity

Programming language for Ethereum smart contracts.

ABI

Application Binary Interface - describes smart contract functions.

Hardhat

Development framework for Ethereum.

Ethers.js

JavaScript library for blockchain interaction.

Web3.js

JavaScript library for Ethereum (alternative to Ethers.js).

Remix

Browser-based Solidity IDE.

Common Abbreviations

• ETH: Ethereum
• BTC: Bitcoin
• USDC: USD Coin (stablecoin)
• USDT: Tether (stablecoin)
• DAI: Decentralized stablecoin
• WETH: Wrapped Ethereum
• LP: Liquidity Provider
• CEX: Centralized Exchange
• KYC: Know Your Customer
• P2P: Peer-to-Peer

Need More Help?

• Check our FAQ
• Join our Community
• Read the Quick Start