**What are the common phrases, words, abbreviations that are used on Stack Overflow, Server Fault, Super User, Meta Stack Overflow, and the other Stack Exchange sites?**

This is meant to be a very quick overview, not an in-depth tutorial. When considering whether a term ought to be included, please use this test:

> 
> New user comes in and posts on day 1. What terminology or jargon are they likely to run into (comments, support, system messages, etc.) that cannot be understood from the context without prior experience with the site (that is, clear only if known). For example: *"This is a dupe. Flag a diamond mod to close or migrate to SU."* Huh? Can these instruction be made clear from the glossary? Is it clear for those for whom English is a second language?
> 
> 
> 

### Please:

* Edit the existing answer
* Insert relevant links to more detailed information on the term/phrase/abbreviation
* Add only factual information
* Keep it very, very brief, terse, and to the point
* *Delete your own comments once they become irrelevant* (integrated into the glossary)
* Use the `Edit Summary` box to note reasons for your edit, not comments

### Please avoid:

* Opinion
* Using abbreviations, terms, and phrases inside a description
* Unverified information
* Uncommon terms, abbreviations, phrases
* Long descriptions
* Unnecessary detail - link to the relevant FAQ instead
* Citations or examples of usage
* Inside jokes that are not common on all of the trilogy ([see meme thread for those](https://meta.stackexchange.com/questions/19478/the-many-memes-of-meta))
* Common Internet jargon (that is, [IMHO](http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/IMHO), [TLDR](http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/TLDR), [RTFM](http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/RTFM), etc.) unless usage here differs significantly

### Recurring discussion:

While the experiment to keep meta-discussion in the comments is going well (that is, deleting them once consensus is reached) it is clear that some discussions will be recurring, and we'll have to keep a record around so people new to the glossary can understand the consensus already reached.

Add a new answer if you believe a new issue is likely to come up repeatedly. For instance, discussion about what terms to include, whether the glossary should be broken up to make linking easier, or formatting issues might be best discussed in new answer/comment posts.

* [0-9, A-M](https://meta.stackexchange.com/a/40354)
* [N-Z](https://meta.stackexchange.com/a/256420)

[Return to FAQ index](/q/7931)