20 common Minecraft terms, jargon, and lingo beginners should know

Minecraft is a pretty accessible game when push comes to shove, but beginners can't be expected to learn everything about it in just a few days. This fact is particularly poignant when it comes to the terminology used between members of the community, which may sound a bit confusing to a player who is diving into the game for the first time and hasn't exactly brushed up on game knowledge.

Although Minecraft does share some lingo with other video games in the industry, especially other survival crafting titles, there are some terms that beginners still may not have heard before.

Fortunately, most Minecraft terms are fairly easy to learn and remember, but it doesn't hurt to examine some of the more nuanced terms.

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20 Minecraft words that new players should remember

As previously noted, a lot of Minecraft vocabulary can be seen in other titles, but some of it is distinctly linked to the world's most popular sandbox game. There are quite a few terms to cover, so it may be best to narrow them down to the more esoteric choices that aren't commonly seen in other games.

If Minecraft players hear certain terms, it's understandable to check what they mean. This is especially true for pure beginners who may not have absorbed any media or discourse surrounding the game during its tenure.

Minecraft terms and their definitions

• Block Clutch - A derivation of clutch involves placing a block underneath the player during a fall to avoid taking damage. Block clutches can be performed using the likes of slime or honey blocks, for example.
• Blind Travel - A Java Edition method that involves entering the Nether, walking some distance away, then placing another portal and entering it to get closer to a stronghold. This is possible due to the fact that distances traversed in the Nether are shorter than they are in the Overworld.
• Caving - Entering a cave to collect resources or loot items can also be used synonymously with mining.
• Chunks - A 16x16 block area of the game world that is 384 blocks tall. Divides the entire world of Minecraft and all of its dimensions into "chunks" that the game engine can render and manage simultaneously.
• Coords - Short for coordinates, pertains to the XYZ coordinates of a given location.
• E-Rays - Utilized in Java Edition by pressing F3 to open the debug menu. In this mode, players can see the sightlines of mobs in the environment, which can help them find generated structures.
• # Eye Portal - An End portal with a certain number of Eyes of Ender already slotted into its portal frame. For example, a 12 Eye Portal is a completed one capable of ferrying players to the End dimension.
• Grief/Griefing - The act of aggressive action toward other Minecraft players, typically against established rules. Includes theft of items and blocks, killing players in PvP unannounced, or destroying a player's build(s).
• Hotkeying - The practice of switching very quickly between items, tools, and weapons in a player's hotbar.
• Invis - Short for invisible, used to describe when a player has turned invisible via the use of a potion or other means.
• Maxed Out - A piece of gear that has been enchanted to the highest frequency possible and can no longer receive additional enchantments.
• MLG - Short for Major League Gaming, but carries a different connotation in Minecraft. Typically, the MLG term is used within the game to signify the use of a water bucket to protect a player from dying from a fall at the last second.
• Notch Apple - A term for Enchanted Golden Apples that also recalls the game's creator, Markus "Notch" Persson, and the original fruit-styled logo of Mojang Studios.
• One Cycle - Defeating the Ender Dragon boss using beds before it can complete "one cycle" of its attack and flight patterns/
• Pearling - Using an ender pearl to teleport to a specific distance by throwing it.
• Prot - Short for protection, referencing the enchantment of the same name that can shield players from a certain amount of incoming damage.
• Skelly - Another term for skeleton mobs that roam the game world and attack players.
• Spleef - A competitive Minecraft minigame where players attempt to destroy the floor under their opposition and force them to fall into a pit until only one player remains.
• Spawner - A block capable of spawning various types of in-game mobs. Can be surrounded with light blocks to prevent it from spawning creatures or being destroyed outright. These blocks are also highly useful when creating mob farms.
• Stack - A full inventory slot's worth of a block or item. For example, Minecraft players can carry 64 cobblestone blocks in a single inventory slot, making 64 cobblestone blocks one stack.

These are just a few of the most notable terms within the beloved sandbox game, but the list is not exhaustive. Numerous other terms should be notable from other video games in most respects, but Minecraft beginners shouldn't feel any pressure learning them all at once. Simply playing the game should be quite helpful in that regard.