Glossary of player terms

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“
Hohoho, hohoho! You got owned!
Click to listen
— The Scout using proper lingo
 ”

A number of unofficial terms find regular usage in the game. This glossary of player terms lists some of the more common ones players may see:

General terminology

#

3 starred
A contract turned in with three objectives completed, rather than only one or two.

3CP / 4CP / 5CP
Short for "3-control point," "4-control point," or "5-control point." Refers to a Control Point map in which there are three, four, or five control points in total.

A

​Achievement server / achievement map
​A server or map dedicated to facilitating players completing achievements without occupying​ and interfering with​ maps where other players are playing to map objectives. Such servers allow players to practice skills or simply socialize without interfering with earnest game play (see griefing). Common features of achievement servers include:
  • Short respawn times and Spawns located close to each other to encourage continuous fighting.​
  • Securable rooms for cooperating without interference.
  • Mechanisms for automatically serving up Bots or idling players as targets​.​
  • Puzzles, mazes, hidden doors, and secret rooms for the entertainment of players​.​
  • Specialized areas for specific ​recreational ​activities such as boxing and Pyro tennis.
Synonym: "idle server."

Airshot / aerial
Main article: Aerial
A projectile that hits an opponent who is in midair, usually following a juggle.
AFK
Acronym of "away from keyboard." Used to describe someone who is not present at their computer for some reason, or is idling.
Airblast
Compression blast.
Amby
Ambassador.
AoE
Abbreviation of "area of effect." Refers to a weapon that can damage multiple players, buildings, or other entities in an area besides the projectile, such as the Soldier's rocket launchers and the Demoman's grenade launchers.
Aussie
Abbreviation of "Australium weapon."

Autobalance
Main article: Team balance
Refers to being switched from one team to another due to a server mechanic deeming the teams unbalanced.
Axtinguish
A colloquialism that describes the critical hit that occurs when a burning enemy is killed by the Axtinguisher.

B

Backcapping
Main article: Backcapping
Capturing a control point behind the enemy team, often while that team is attempting to capture a point whose possession changes more slowly. For example, sneaking in to take the final capture point, which on many maps changes possession very quickly, while the opposing team is attempting to retake their second point.
Bakestaybed
Humorous slang for "backstabbed."
Battle Engie / Battle Engineer
A player playing as the Engineer who engages in frontline combat, placing Sentry Guns in unexpected location and using his primary weapon offensively. The Gunslinger is a common weapon for Battle Engies due to its ability to quickly and cheaply deploy Combat Mini-Sentry Guns.
Battle Med / Battle Medic
A player playing as the Medic who focuses on killing opponents rather than healing teammates. Battle Medics who do not supplement fighting with healing or are otherwise unhelpful to the team effort are often looked down upon by teammates, as Medics are expected to fulfill their role as a support class.
Beam
May refer to:
  • The healing beam emitted from the Medic's Medi Gun.
  • The UFO's beam on Watergate. The Announcer states, "We are in the beam" when a teammate enters the UFO's tracker beam to complete the map objective. The phrase is synonymous with this map and used as a exclamation of excitement within the community.

Bhopping / bunny hopping
May refer to:
  • A jumping/air-strafing technique that increases speed (only a small amount in Team Fortress 2).
  • Crouching briefly enough to shift the view lower without affecting movement speed.
  • Crouching right after jumping to reach a greater distance or cover a wider gap. This is often used for rocket jumping, sticky jumping, and other forms of explosive jumps. See: Jumping.
  • Repeatedly jumping to throw off the aim of enemies or to avoid splash damage from explosions on the ground.
Bind
Refers to when a player binds a line of text chat (using the console command bind key "say text", where "key" is the key the user wishes to bind the command to and "text" is the text the user wishes to use in his or her chat messages upon pressing the key).
Birb
A humorous alteration of Bird (see entry below). Refers to roughly the same definitions, but is often used particularly for a Heavy donning the Chicken Kiev who acts friendly or silly.
Bird
May refer to:
Bird Scout
A Scout that frequently makes use of additional jumping capabilities offered by many of his weapons.
Bodyshot
An attack where a Sniper player shoots an enemy's body, as opposed to their head, preferably killing them.
See also: Headshot
Bodyshotter
May refer to:
  • A Sniper player who repeatedly shoots bodies rather than heads.
  • The Machina, as Snipers using this weapon tend to aim at bodies rather than heads due to the extra damage bonus and piercing ability.
Bodysnatched
Refers to being killed with Your Eternal Reward. Players may announce their death in either text or voice chat. The term is a reference to the movie Invasion of the Body Snatchers.
Bomb
May refer to:
Bonk / Bonk!
May refer to:
Bonus ducks
An infamous voiceline spoken by Merasmus whenever the player picks up a rare "Bonus Duck" pickup during the End of the Line Update. It is used as an exclamation for shock or excitement, especially during any Merasmus-related events such as the Carnival of Carnage.
Box Spy / Box Trot Spy / box crab
A player playing as the Spy who uses the Box Trot to strategically move around the battlefield or blend in among environmental objects. It is possible for an undetected Box Spy to capture certain objectives or prevent the capture thereof.

Boxing​​
​Heavies fighting each other with melee weapons​ only​.​

Buff
May refer to:
See also: Buff on Wikipedia
Butterknife
May refer to:
  • Term for when a Spy gets a non-backstab kill with the Knife.
  • Non-backstab attacks with the Knife in general.
Bushwhack
Term for killing a Jarate-covered opponent with the Bushwacka.

C

Caber
Shorthand for the Ullapool Caber.
Camping
Main article: Camping
The act of staying in one location in which enemies are more likely to pass, not knowing that you are there. Used kill enemies effortlessly. This term does not apply to a player properly playing the game, such as an Engineer protecting his buildings or temporarily hiding in a corner for a short duration.
Cannon
Short for the Loose Cannon.
Cannon jumping
The act of using a delayed cannonball shot from the Loose Cannon to perform an explosive jump that covers long distances.
Cannon Knight
A variation of the Hybrid Knight who uses the Loose Cannon, mainly to do an air charge after a cannon jump.
Cap
Refers to the completion of an objective such as a control point capture or returning the enemy's Intelligence to one's base.
Carrying
When a player or group of players contribute a significantly higher portion towards winning the game objective than their teammates.

Chaincap
Capturing the next point immediately after the previous point has been captured.
Chainsap
May refer to:
  • The placement of Sappers on several buildings at a time.
  • The rapid replacement of Sappers on a single building, preventing the Engineer from repairing it.
Chainstab
Killing numerous enemies in quick succession via the backstab capability of any of the Spy's melee weapons.
Chievements / Chieves / Cheevos
Slang terms for "achievements."
Chokepoint
An area that is relatively narrow, forcing players to group up to pass through. This makes it easier to defend by using weapons that damage in an area of effect.
Circle strafe
Main article: Circle strafing
The act of moving around an opponent while keeping your crosshair locked on and attacking.
Civilian
May refer to:
Clutch
May refer to:
  • A crucial moment related to winning or losing a match.
  • The ability to perform under pressure.
Not to be confused with Crutch.
Collateral
Using the Machina to kill two or more enemies with a single fully-charged shot.
Collector
May refer to:
  • A player who collects a large number of one type of item.
  • An item of the Collector's quality.
Combat Class
A class whose health and firepower is greater in proportion to its mobility, often found at the front lines. Classes include the Soldier, Demoman, and Heavy.
Combo
May refer to:
  • A general term for a Medic and his Medic buddy. Can be used in specific context; i.e. a "Heavy Combo" is used to indicate a Medic healing a Heavy.
  • A series of attacks that take advantage of the fast weapon switch capability of either the Degreaser or Reserve Shooter. A Pyro may use the Degreaser to ignite an enemy, then quickly switch to the Flare Gun to finish him with a Critical Hit.
Comp
Short for "competitive play."
Cornerstab
Main article: Backstab
A form of trickstabbing by waiting around a corner to backstab an enemy as a Spy. One method of doing this is by "baiting" the enemy into following him and then waiting around a corner.
CP
Acronym for "control point."
Cratering
Dying from fall damage, either by falling a great distance or being accelerated into the ground by an explosive.
Crit
Short for "critical hit."
Critana/Kritana
Old fan nickname for the Half-Zatoichi before the Tough Break Update.
Crocket
A portmanteau of Crit and Rocket.

Crumpkin kill
A kill scored while under the effect of a crit-boost from a Halloween pumpkin pickup. (from contraction of crit-pumpkin)
Crutch
A derogatory term for a weapon that compensates for a player's lack of skill.
Not to be confused with Clutch.
Custom map
A map that has been made by a member of the TF2 community but has not been officially added to the game.

D

Deathmatch/DM
May refer to:
  • An unofficial term for Arena Mode.
  • A player that focuses more on obtaining kills rather than the objective.
  • A map that has a difficult-to-capture objective and hence encourages killing without working towards the objective. An example would be Hightower.
Demo
May refer to:
Democrab
A Demoman that imitates the movement of a crab by crouch-walking with the Conscientious Objector or other Saxxy reskins. The term derives from the community fad Spycrab, which also requires the user to crouch walk while holding a specific weapon.
Demoknight
May refer to:
  • A Demoman typically wielding the Chargin' Targe, Tide Turner or Splendid Screen that actively uses their melee weapon. Variations of the term usually refer to their other equipped weapons. Demoknights wielding the Bottle may be referred to as "Bottleknights", whereas Demoknights wielding the Sticky Jumper may be referred to as "Jumperknights" or "Rocketknights".
  • In Mann vs. Machine, a robot Demoman variant that uses the Chargin' Targe and Eyelander.
Demonstration Man
Slang for the Demoman, used in a silly fashion. Derives from the word "demonstration", which becomes "demo" when shortened.
Demopan
A Demoman carrying the Frying Pan, Bounty Hat, Chargin' Targe, and Dangeresque, Too?, referring to a popular community fad.
Demospam
Derogatory term used to describe a Demoman who spams his Grenade Launcher or Stickybomb Launcher without aiming.
Derping
Silly behavior that could include repeated taunting or antics for their own sake; potentially a form of griefing if performed during combat or excessively during Setup time.
DH
Acronym for the Direct Hit.
Direct Miss
May refer to:
  • Fan name for the Direct Hit, which lacks a large splash radius and requires precise aim.

DR
Acronym for the Dead Ringer weapon for the Spy. In some contexts, it could be used as a signal that an enemy Spy equipped with the Dead Ringer is nearby.
Dr. Enforcicle
A label for a Spy player who uses the Dead Ringer, Enforcer, and the Spy-cicle together. The term is a portmanteau of the latter two weapons, with the Dead Ringer's common abbreviation "DR" used at the beginning.
Drop
May refer to:

E

Edging
Fighting an immobile target by strafing out of cover, firing, then strafing back into cover, generally at a corner. This tactic is especially effective against Sentry Guns, as the Sentry Gun's slow turn rate makes it easy to shoot at before it can return fire.
Engie / Engi
Abbreviation for the Engineer.
Engineer Nest
Slang term used to describe a location where one or more Engineers have set up multiple Buildings.
Engi"nearing"
Slang term used to describe the Rescue Ranger's pick-up ability.
EOTL
Abbreviation for the End of the Line Update.

F

F2P
May refer to:
  • An acronym for "Free-2-Play" (Free-to-play), used to describe new players who do not possess a Premium account.
  • A derogatory term referring to a player lacking skill, based on the generalization of non-Premium players being less skilled at the game.
  • Abbreviation for the Free to Play update.
  • Anything that can be obtained without becoming a Premium player, such as the Ghostly Gibus and Pyrovision Goggles.
See also: Free-to-play on Wikipedia and P2P
Facestab
A Spy's knife attack that registers as a backstab despite appearing to hit their opponent's front due to lag compensation.
See also: Backstab issues
FAN / FaN
Acronym for the Force-A-Nature weapon for the Scout.

Farming
The act of obtaining something with less time commitment or in-game contribution than was originally intended (from the misconception that farmers do nothing but wait for their crops to grow). May refer to:
See also: Idler
Fat Scout
Refers to a Heavy who primarily uses either the Shotgun, Family Business, or Panic Attack rather than his primary weapon. He may also frequently equip the Gloves of Running Urgently or Eviction Notice.
Field of View / FOV
A term to describe how much a player can see onscreen at a time.
Flag
Synonym for the Intelligence in Capture the Flag maps.

Flank
Refers to any particular alternate route that can bypass enemies. These are often lengthy and out of the way or require jumping or swimming. Examples of flanks include the waterways in Well (Control Point), the back routes through the Lobby on Badwater Basin, or Spiral Straircase also on Badwater Basin.
Flare punch
A term to describe the act of a Pyro manipulating flame particles to use the Flare Gun (usually paired with the Degreaser) to crit an enemy Pyro in the short time span that they are on fire.
Flyro
A Pyro using the Thermal Thruster.
FoW
Acronym for the Fan O'War.
Frag
Synonym for "kill," often used when the player killed has been gibbed.
Frag video
Refers to a video that records a player's kills in the game.

Friendly / friendlies
May refer to:
Refers to the act of not fighting. "Friendly" can either be a verb or a noun, where "friendlies" is the plural of the noun. Players may do so out of boredom, frustration due to being on the losing team, or to propose a stalemate. To counteract how overly-friendly behavior stops legitimate games, some servers have a plugin called "Friendly Mode," which turns users into ghosts that cannot harm or be harmed. The most common examples of friendly behavior are:
  • Crouching while walking.
  • Using voice commands in a humorous way (such as using the "No" voice command to respond to "The Sniper is a Spy!" or repeatedly using the "Help!" voice command as the Heavy).
  • Giving Sandviches or other edibles to enemies as a Heavy.
  • Starting a group or two-player Action taunt, such as the Conga or Flippin' Awesome.
A teammate.

G

GG/gg
Good game, sometimes from a moral or sportsmanship standpoint rather than winning/losing.
GJ/gj
Good job, used often at the end of a game in a manner similar to GG.
GR/gr
May refer to:
  • Good round. Used when the match is composed of more than one round (like Stopwatch matches on A\D and Payload maps, or "First to X" matches).
  • "Get rekt".

Gibus
May refer to:
  • A shortened version of either the Ghostly Gibus, Ghastly Gibus, Ghastlier Gibus, or Ghastlierest Gibus, often associated with novice players or players without a premium account due to the fact that obtaining one of these hats is easy and possible without obtaining a premium account.
  • A player wearing one of the aforementioned hats.
Gibusvision
A slang term for wearing a combination of a Gibus hat and the Pyrovision Goggles. As with the term "Gibus," this is associated with novice or non-premium players.
Googly Eyes
Slang for the Sight for Sore Eyes.
Goomba Stomp / Goomba stomp
Goomba stomp: Killing another player by jumping on their head with the Mantreads or Thermal Thruster.
Goomba Stomp: A server mod that allows players to kill enemies by simply jumping on their heads, even without use of the Mantreads.
The name is a reference to the Goomba enemy from Nintendo's Mario video game franchise.
Gottam
A slang term deriving from the Engineer voice command line "Gotta move that gear up!"

Griefing
Main article: Griefing
Deliberately causing annoyance to players on the server, either to one's own team or the opposing team. Oftentimes, griefing involves the use of map or weapon exploits.

Grinding
May refer to:
  • Working continuously on the actions for a specific achievement or Contract Objective, particularly those that must be repeated several times or require a great number of attempts (from the concept that grinding is a slow but steady way to shape metal). Since the action might not be the best for some tactical situations, a few may consider it idling in some situations. As opposed to farming, the player is actively in a game with other players and is usually contributing in some way to the objectives, if indirectly.
  • Repeatedly damaging one's self to speed building of ÜberCharge by a companion Medic, particularly referred to as self-damage grinding.
Groundstalling
A term to describe the act of airblasting an enemy into the ground, which the game still counts as mid-air, and mini-critting them with the Reserve Shooter.
This is outdated as of the Jungle Inferno Update, which no longer allows the weapon to mini-crit players launched into the air by the Pyro's airblast.
GRU / GORU GoRU
Acronym for the Gloves of Running Urgently.
Gunshot bride
A highly exaggerated term for a well-aimed airshot. Originates from a video named 300% skilled airshot, where a Soldier lands a slow-motion airshot on a Demoman while Pendulum-Propane Nightmares plays in the background.
Gunspy
A label for a Spy who uses his primary weapon more than his melee weapon.
G. [name of item]
An item of the Genuine quality.

H

Hacking / hacker / hacks
Main article: Hacking
Hacking: The method of using illicit programs to gain an unfair advantage against other players.
Hacker: A player who hacks.
Hacks: An illicit program that allows a player to gain unfair advantages against other players.
Hale
May refer to:
Halo-caust
A slang term used to reference the September 2, 2009 Patch where Valve penalized players who had been using external programs to idle. As a result, some servers (primarily those run by people that didn't get Cheater's Laments) began opting "anti-halo" policies, even going so far as to use mods that changed the Cheater's Lament to form various insults targeting the wearer. The term is derived from the nickname for the Cheater's Lament that non-offending players received, placed in combination with a reference to the Holocaust.
HHH
An abbreviation for the Horseless Headless Horsemann.

HHH Axe / HHHH
An abbreviation for the Horseless Headless Horsemann's Headtaker. Synonym: UHHHH.
Hoovy
A friendly Hoovy. Plural: hoovies. The Sandvich is a popular secondary weapon for Hoovy players, as they tend to drop it for both teammates and enemies to replenish their health.
Slang term for Heavy, often used in a silly fashion.
Huddah
A simplified translation of one of the Pyro's mumbles.
Hybrid Knight
A Demoknight who mostly uses the Grenade Launcher due to the shields giving temporary crits (mini-crits with the Tide Turner) during a charge.

I

Idle server
See Achievement server / achievement map.

Idler
May refer to:
  • Someone who is present on the server but is deliberately not playing the game for a long period of time to earn items via the item drop system.
  • Someone who uses external idling programs or uses achievement servers for the same purpose.
  • On an active game server (expecially in Casual Mode), someone who is otherwise not participating in the game, but is not particularity bothering anyone, possibly indicated by staying in spawn, staying far from the action, or having a very low score.
See also: Idling.
Instakill
A kill achieved in a single hit with the player being killed having full health. Examples include a charged headshot or an environmental kill, such as being hit by a Train or being caught in the Payload cart's explosion at the end of a round.

Intel
Abbreviation for the Intelligence in Capture the Flag maps.

Invuln
A term for ÜberCharge. Synomyms: "Über" and "charge."

J

Jar
Short for Jarate.
Jarate chop
A hit with the Bushwacka after covering an enemy in Jarate.
Juggling
Main article: Juggling
Refers to the use of weapons to temporarily suspend enemies in the air.
Jump map
Main article: Jump maps
A map designed for practicing jumping skills for the Soldier, Demoman, and Scout.
Jumper
Refers to either the Rocket Jumper, Sticky Jumper, or B.A.S.E Jumper.

K

Katana
Alternative term for the Half-Zatoichi.
K/D and K/A/D
Acronym for "Kill-Death Ratio" and "Kill Assist Death Ratio". May be expressed as a ratio (27:7) or a decimal number (1.75 KDR). Medics will often present their KDR as a ratio of assists to deaths, as kills are not usually accumulated in conventional Medic play.
KGB
Acronym for the Killing Gloves of Boxing.
Kick
May refer to:
  • The act of votekicking a player in the hopes of kicking them out of a server, or if an administrator is present on a community server, immediately kicking.
  • A shorthand version of the Kazotsky Kick.
Knockback
The movement of a player, caused by an outside source. Often associated with weapons such as the Force-A-Nature.
See Knock back.
Kritz
Slang for the ÜberCharge of the Kritzkrieg, or being subjected to one.

L

Lag
Main article: Lag compensation
The effect experienced by players who display erratic movement due to high latency.
See also: Lag on Wikipedia
Last
Short for the last control point. On Control Point or Payload maps, it refers to the last control point or cart checkpoint that the attackers have to capture to win the game.
Leapstab
Main article: Backstab
A form of trickstabbing by jumping from an elevated position and backstabbing an enemy upon or before landing on the ground as the Spy.

​

Leveling server
A server primarily for players to rapidly increase the levels​ of​ Strange items​.​
Lft
Abbreviation of "looking for team." Often added after a player's name to advertise that they are interested in joining a competitive team.
Lucksman
A term used for the Huntsman, referring to the ease of getting kills with this weapon, only having to rely on "luck," due to the arrows' large hitboxes.

M

Mann Up
Short for the Mann Up Mode in Mann vs. Machine.
Mini-Sentry
Short for "Combat Mini-Sentry Gun."
Main
A class which a player mostly plays or only plays in any given match.

Matador stab
Main article: Backstab
A form of trickstabbing by tricking an enemy to follow you and then quickly strafing to the side to sidestab him.
Marked
Used to signal teammates that an enemy has been hit by the Fan O'War.
Market garden
Using the Market Gardener while rocket jumping. Usually referred to a kill using the weapon while in mid-air. May also refer to similar airborne kills using the melee weapon as a different class.
Meat
Refers to either the Buffalo Steak Sandvich or the Ham Shank.
Meatshot
When all or most of the bullets fired from weapons with large spreads, such as the Shotgun or Scattergun, hit the target, thereby doing massive damage. The term was made famous by Daniel "carnagejohnson" Sturdivant.[citation needed]
Meem
Slang for "MEDIC!"—often used in a silly fashion. It originated from the community fad which came from taking the Medic's "MEDIC!" voice line, cutting off the second half, playing the first half, and then, immediately playing it backwards, causing it to replicate the word "meme."
Meta
The most effective way to play the game competitively, deemed by the community. Usually refers to certain playstyles or weapon loadouts.
Meta 6/meta team
In the context of Mann vs. Machine, a team that is the same as the one shown in Mann vs. Machine (teaser) (Scout, Demo, Soldier, Heavy, Medic, Engie).
Mic/Mike
A microphone, used for communication over voice chat.
Mic spam
Originally described as the act of repeatedly playing sounds, music, or generally abusing the game's voice chat feature. It has since grown to include all manner of sound playing. Third party software is often used to accomplish this, including HLDJ, Virtual Audio Cable, and Manycam. Micspam can be considered either entertaining or griefing, depending on the server.
Positive aspects of mics pam may include:
  • Playing music for the server.
  • Playing comedic soundbites from TV shows, movies, standup acts, and more.
  • Playing appropriate sound files on specific occasions for humorous effect.
Negative uses of mic spam may include:
  • Repeatedly playing the same audio file to annoy other players.
  • Playing sounds that are high in bass or volume and can potentially damage other players' speakers, headphones, or even hearing.
  • Periodically playing an irritating noise during a fraction of a second, making it very difficult for others to see who broadcasted the sound.
  • Creating noise by singing, blowing into the microphone, or simply talking incessantly to disrupt others.
  • Using voice modification software to manipulate one's voice to sound either extremely high pitched or robotic to disrupt others.
Mid
Short for the middle control point. Used most commonly on five-point Control Point maps.
Mmph
May refer to:
  • A simplified translation of one of the Pyro's muffles.
  • The MMPH meter, a meter on the Phlogistinator that fills based on fire damage.
MvM
Short for Mann vs. Machine.

N

Nerf
Slang for a weapon's attributes being made weaker for game balance. Antonym: "buff."
See also: Nerf on Wikipedia
Ninja
May refer to:
See also: Back-capping

Ninjaneer
May refer to:
  • An Engineer who tries to get behind enemy lines, then secretly builds a nest of buildings to teleport teammates in and lock the enemy team inside their base.
  • An Engineer who uses the Eureka Effect to escape from the front lines when in trouble. He may try to return to the enemy base via a hidden Teleporter Exit shortly afterwards.
See also: Team strategy: The Ninjaneer
Noscope
Killing an enemy as a Sniper with a Sniper Rifle without zooming in. Commonly associated with the Classic due to its tendency to scope and get headshots without requiring the player to zoom in.
Noob
General gaming slang for an inexperienced or new player. "Noob" and its homophones are generally considered to be more offensive, denoting someone with a lack of skill attributable to a deeper level than simple inexperience.

O

OMGWTFBBQ
A Pyro Achievement achieved by taunt killing an enemy using the Hadouken taunt as the Pyro.
OP
General acronym for Overpowered, used both seriously and jokingly to describe a powerful weapon.

P

P2P
An acronym for "pay-to-play," used to describe a user with a premium account. Often used jokingly to suggest that premium users have advantages over non-premium users.
See also: F2P
Peaceful
See Friendly / friendlies.
Point
Short for Control Point.
Phlog
Short for Phlogistinator.
Pimp Hat
Slang term for the Hustler's Hallmark cosmetic for the Demoman.
Pipebomb / Pipes / Pills
Alternate name for the projectiles fired by the Grenade Launcher.
Piss
Slang for Jarate.
Pissrifle / Pissgun
Slang for the Sydney Sleeper.

Pocket
May refer to a player whose role is to focus support on a single teammate:
  • A player who is the primary healing target of a Medic.
  • A Medic who primarily heals one particular ally.
  • A Pocket Pyro or Pybro who protects an Engineer.
Pop
A synonym for using an ÜberCharge, used to quickly communicate to one's teammates in the middle of a battle.
Pootis
A slang term derived from the Heavy voice command "Put Dispenser here!"
PoV demo
A recorded demo that has been recorded from the player's point of view.
Pro
May refer to:
  • A term used when a skilled move has been executed.
  • An accomplished player, often one who specializes in competitive play.

Pub
May refer to:
Pubstomp
A practice in which an experienced players or multiple experienced players join a pub with the intention of spectacularly defeating the opposing team.
Puff
Slang for compression blast.
Puff'n'sting
A technique whereby a Pyro lights an enemy on fire with the Degreaser, uses the compression blast to knock them into the air, and then takes advantage of the Degreaser's switch time to kill the opponent with his melee weapon. Switching to his secondary weapon to finish off opponent is instead known as a "Puff'n'Shoot".
PUG
Acronym for "pick-up game" (also known as a lobby) in which players will organize to play a match following the competitive format of Highlander, 6v6, or 4v4 games.
Push
May refer to:
  • The act of escorting the Payload cart.
  • An organized attack in which several players simultaneously move into enemy territory and attack in an attempt to overpower an enemy's defenses and complete an objective, such as capturing a control point or advancing the cart. Often accompanied by an ÜberCharge.
  • The CTF map Push from Team Fortress Classic.

Pybro
A Pyro who helps friendly Engineers by checking for Spies, airblasting projectiles away from buildings, and removing Sappers with the Homewrecker or the Neon Annihilator.

Pyro tennis
A game played by Pyros on a tennis court (of sorts) where they air blast the "Happy Birthday Team Fortress" beach ball back and forth over the net.
Pyrocar
Synonym of W+M1. The term was created after a player decided to play Pyro with a steering wheel peripheral, literally becoming a "Pyro car" [1].

Pyroshark
A term used for Pyros who use the Neon Annihilator to attack enemies whilst underwater. Often jokingly used as though the Pyro character is a literal shark.

Q

QQ
General gaming slang originating from Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness, in which the keyboard key combination Alt + Q + Q would quit the game. Nowadays, it is interpreted as an emoticon with a pair of crying eyes. Often used in a deriding manner (e.g., "QQ more" ["Cry more"]).
Quickscope
Quickly zooming in and instantaneously headshotting with any of the Sniper's primary weapons that are capable of doing so.

R

Rage
May refer to:
Rage Heavy
A term used for a player who uses the Heavy as a last ditch effort after a losing streak or bout of frustration, hoping to use his large firepower to gain kills easily.
Can also be used with other classes; e.g., a player might Rage Pyro after suffering a streak of backstab deaths.

Rage hacks
The method of hacking with the intent to get as many kills and cause as much annoyance as possible, not trying to look legit.
See also: Griefing, Legit hacks

Rage quit
Leaving the game because of frustration or anger with the round or other players.
Random crit
Commonly used description to describe when a player receives a critical hit that is not caused by a specific attribute of a weapon. Can be used as an acknowledgement when a fight may be prematurely over between two players attempting to fight fairly.
Reflect
A term used when the compression blast is used to send enemy projectiles back towards the enemy team.
Revving
May refer to:
  • Spinning up the Heavy's primary weapon using the alternate-fire button.
  • The delay experienced when the Minigun spins up prior to shooting using the primary fire button.
RNG
Abbreviation for "random number generation." Used to describe situations that are heavily dependent on luck such as random critical hits or Rock, Paper, Scissors.
Roll The Dice
An unofficial server plugin that allows players to "roll the dice" using a command. Upon rolling the dice, players are granted some form of benefit or handicap, such as unlimited crits or being frozen in place for a short period of time.
Rock The Vote
An unofficial server plugin that allows players to change the map if a certain number of players in a server uses the command.
Rush
The practice of attempting to complete an objective quickly with all the players of one team playing as the same class. A "Scout Rush" would make use of entirely Scouts.

Revengineer
An Engineer who uses the Frontier Justice to fight after his Sentry Gun has been destroyed.

S

Salt / salty
A term used to describe frustration or overreaction or a player who is frustrated or overreacting, respectively.
Sap'n'stab
Slang for a technique wherein a Spy lures an Engineer to a building by sapping it and then backstabs him as returns to repair it.
Scoot
Slang term for Scout, often used in a silly fashion.
Scramble
Refers to a vote to auto-rearrange both teams and restart the round for team balance. As of the Meet Your Match Update, calling such a vote is no longer possible.
See also: Autobalance
Scunt
Portmanteau of "Scout" and "cunt", used as a derogatory term to describe Scout mains.
Second scoping
A Sniper dueling technique which consists of waiting until the opposing Sniper scopes before scoping in yourself to headshot them while they adjust to the view.
Sentry
Short for "Sentry Gun."
SF
Festive weapons of Strange quality (e.g. "SF Scattergun").
Shield
One of the three shield secondaries for Demoman: the Chargin' Targe, the Splendid Screen, or the Tide Turner

Sidestab
Main article: Backstab
Backstabbing an enemy from their side rather than their back. The backstab "hitbox" is exceedingly wide and allows a Spy player to backstab an enemy without directly facing his back.
Situational
A weapon or technique viewed only to be useful in very specific situations.
Snoipah
Humorous slang for the Sniper.
Solly
Slang for the Soldier.
Spam / Spamming
May refer to:
  • The act of deliberately concentrating firepower within particular area in an attempt to get kills or deter enemy players from entering an area.
  • Wanton firing of weapons such as the Grenade Launcher with little or no deliberate aim.
  • An unwanted abundance of something such as chat messages, a specific class, or a certain tactic.
See Griefing.
Spawn
The area in which the player initially spawns or any area in which they respawn.
Spawncamping
A situation in which one team manages to secure the area around the other team's spawn point. This results in the latter team being killed upon leaving spawn without coordination or significant firepower.
See Camping.
Spec
Abbreviation for the spectate feature.
Spah
Humorous slang term for a Spy, derived from the Engineer's pronunciation of the word "Spy" in his voice command lines.
Shpee
Humorous slang term for a novice or inexperienced player playing as the Spy, often used as though the Spy character is a literal baby animal.
Spycap
A strategy where a Spy will lurk near a locked control point with the intention of capturing it as soon as it is unlocked, before the enemy team has time to retreat from defending the previous point. This is usually performed at the final point of a map due to the accelerated control point timing.
See Chaincap.
Spy checking / spychecking
Main article: Spy checking
The procedure of firing at teammates to check if they are disguised enemy Spies.
Spycrab / Spycrabbing
May refer to:
  • A Spy that imitates the movement of a crab by crouching and looking up while having the Disguise Kit equipped. It has then became a popular fad. The Spy has a corresponding taunt which rarely occurs when taunting with the Disguise Kit, a reference to the original movement.
  • A form of gambling in which participants are Spies and continuously taunt with the Disguise Kit. The rules may differ between groups; one example marks players who perform the "Spycrab" taunt as losers, continuing until there is only one person left.
Spygineer
May refer to:
See also: Ninjaneer.
Spyper
May refer to:

Spyro
May refer to:
Squeaker
Refers to a younger player who uses their microphone often, usually unintentionally annoying others with a higher-pitched voice.
SR / ScoRes
Acronym for the Demoman's Scottish Resistance.
Stab'n'sap
Slang for a technique whereby a Spy backstabs an Engineer from behind and then immediately switches to the Sapper and saps the Engineer's Sentry Gun before it immediately kills him.
Stacking
Refers to one team being composed of players who work together or are more skilled than the other. The most common case is on a public server, having one team of skilled players against one that is less experienced or poorly organized.

Stairstab
Main article: Backstab
A form of trickstabbing by jumping down a flight of stairs to land behind and backstab a chasing enemy as a Spy. One method for doing so is for the Spy to "bait" the victim into following him up a flight of stairs.
Sticky / sticky
Short for Stickybombs.
Sticky spam
The act of continuously firing Stickybombs into enemy lines and immediately detonating them, as opposed to setting up sticky traps.
Sticky trap
The act of placing multiple Stickybombs in an area with the intention of detonating them upon an enemy unknowingly walking over them.
Subclass
A specific weapon combination that drastically changes the way the class is played. Examples are the Demoknight, the Battle Engie, and the Trolldier.
Surfing
Main article: Surfing
May refer to:
  • A mod that allows players to slant into walls (commonly referred to as ramps), causing them to accelerate rapidly and reach extremely high velocities.
Survivability
The likelihood of the survival of a player in the battlefield.
S. [name of item]
An item of the Strange quality.

T

Tank
Main article: Tank
Noun: A character with sufficient firepower and health (Heavy or Soldier) to draw enemy attention and attacks toward themselves to protect other teammates.
Verb: To absorb damage for the team.
Tap
Being near the Payload cart for a brief moment to prevent it from backing up. Scouts or briefly uncloaking Spies are the most practical for this task.
Targe
Short for the Chargin' Targe.
Tele
Short for the Teleporter.
Telefrag
Portmanteau of teleport and frag – killing an opponent by teleporting into them when they are standing on a teleporter exit. The term comes from id Software's seminal first-person shooter Doom.
See Telefrag.
Tickle fight
​Boxing ​done ​with the Holiday Punch​ only,​ with the objective of making the other player perform the Schadenfreude ​taunt due to one of the weapon's positive attributes.
Tour
May refer to:

Trickstab
Main article: Backstab
Refers to when a player playing as the Spy takes advantage of the terrain to outmaneuver and backstab an enemy after being spotted. There are many different variations of the term, all meaning different things: "stairstab," "cornerstab," "leapstab," and "matador stab."

Trolldier
Portmanteau of "Soldier" and "troll." Commonly refers to a Soldier seeking to fight with primarily the Market Gardener. He may also wield the Rocket Jumper or Mantreads.
Turtling
"Digging in" and employing extremely defensive tactics. May also refer to Engineer setting up a Sentry Gun and Dispenser next to each other, and then remaining in close proximity for a substantial period of time while constantly repairing the buildings.
Tryhard
A deragatory term for a player who is skilled at the game and puts significant effort towards winning a match.
A deragatory term for a player who tries to win a match despite other players being friendly.

U

Über
Short for "ÜberCharge." Synomyms: "charge" and "invuln."
Übered
A player who is currently being ÜberCharged.

UHHHH
An abbreviation for the Unusual Horseless Headless Horsemann's Headtaker. Synonyms: "Headtaker," "Headtaker," and "Headtaker."

V

Vanilla
May refer to:
Volvo
Slang for Valve, typically used in a silly fashion. Originates from the similar pronunciations of "Volvo" and "Valve."
VRH
Abbreviation of the Virtual Reality Headset.
V. [name of item]
An item of the Vintage quality.

W

W+M1
Literally, "forward (Default key W) and MOUSE1," a derogatory term referring to an aggressive player playing as the Pyro or the Heavy, often connotative of a lack of skill. It refers to players who mindlessly rush (W) and fire their primary weapon (M1) without caring to flank or strategize with teammates.
W+M2
Literally, "forward (Default key W) and MOUSE2," derived from "W+M1." The term is similarly used to refer to players playing as the Pyro and only using the compression blast ability to reflect projectiles or shove enemies around without using the primary fire attack of the primary weapon.
Warp / Warping
An extreme form of Lag compensation in which a player seems to be teleporting from place to place due to extreme latency.
Weapon heckling
Using a class's repositioning abilities, such as the Scout's speed, to continuously force an opponent to use a disadvantageous weapon. For example, a Scout can maintain a safe distance from a Pyro, forcing the Pyro to equip the Shotgun, which is then outdamaged by the Scattergun at close range.
Wep
Abbreviation for weapon, used in trading discussions.
Whip
Slang for the Disciplinary Action.
A verb referring to using the Disiplinary Action to boost the speed of you and a teammate.
Wrenching / wrenched
May refer to:
  • The act of repairing/upgrading a building with a wrench.
  • The act of killing an enemy with a wrench.

Y

YER
Acronym for the Your Eternal Reward weapon for the Spy.

Competitive terminology

These are some of the terms which players use in competitive gameplay.

#

4v4 / 4v4s / 4s
Shorthand for a competitive format where there are only 4 players per team. All classes can be used, but there can only be one of each class at a time. Additionally, the Heavy and Medic are banned from being used at the same time. The standard line up tends to consist of a a Scout, a Soldier, a Demoman, and a Medic. This format tends to promote more offclassing.
6v6 / 6v6s / 6s
Shorthand for a standard competitive format where there are six players per team, commonly consisting of two Scouts, a Soldier who stays with the Medic (referred to as a "Pocket"), a second Soldier that focuses on utilizing alternate routes to attack the enemy (referred to as a "Roamer"), one Demoman, and one Medic.

B

Bombing
Refers to when a player playing as the Soldier or Demoman rocket or sticky jumps above enemy players in order to shoot explosives down upon them.

C

Charge
Short for "ÜberCharge." Synomyms: "Über" and "invuln."
Comms
Short for communication. This refers to players communicating to each other either by using the in-game text chat or through voice chat, or more commonly an outside voice over IP (VoIP) program such as Mumble or Ventrilo.

D

Destroyed
Similar to "lit," this term describes an enemy player who has taken a large amount of damage and has very low health.
Dry push
Describes when an attacking team rushes the defending team's last point without having an ÜberCharge ready. Usually attempted when the defending team also doesn't have an ÜberCharge and the attackers outnumber the defenders.

E

ETF2L
Acronym for European Team Fortress 2 League. It is the central hub of the European competitive TF2 scene.
See ETF2L.
ESEA
Acronym for E-Sports Entertainment Association, a paid 6's league in North America. Generally, the highest skill players are in this league.
See ESEA.

F

Force / Force pop
To damage a Medic or his heal target enough to urge a Medic to deploy his Übercharge in self-defense, rather than using it to push. The alternate form incorporates the usage of "pop" to refer to the usage of an Übercharge.

H

Have / Has
Indicates that a team's Medic has a full ÜberCharge ready to deploy.
Highlander / HL / 9s / 9v9 / 9vs9
A competitive match type wherein the nine-player roster of each team consists of one of every class.

L

Legit hacks
The act of using hacks to perform well in the game without being caught as being a hacker. Oftentimes, many players in popular competitive leagues have been "legit hacking" and have since been caught.
See also: Rage hacks

Lit
To be low on health. Commonly used to point out enemy players that can be easily finished off, although priority friendly classes such as the Demoman or Pocket will use this term when calling for a Medic.
Lobby
A synonym for "pug" ("pick-up-game"), popularized by the website TF2Lobby. Since TF2Lobby is no longer active, lobbies are primarily organized and played on TF2Center.

O

Offclassing
A technique involving deviation from the standard competitive class roster, often to accomplish a specific objective or eliminate a specific enemy player.

M

Maincalling
Coordinating and giving directions to your team. Mostly used in matches before pushing.

P

PUG
Acronym of "pick up game/group," which refers to a private game with team compositions determined by out-of-game communication (as opposed to a clan match or pub).
Pick / picking / picked
The act of focusing on and killing an enemy with minimal help.

R

Roamer
Refers to the Soldier that watches flank routes.
Roll / Rolling / Rolled
Figurative language describing a very fast completion of the game's objective after it begins, often in relation to a "crushing defeat".
Rollout
The specific path that a player takes on the way to the middle capture point. It is designed to get the player to that point as quickly as possible or to reach an advantageous position.

S

Scrim
Short for "scrimmage." Refers to a practice match between two teams.

U

UGC
Acronym for United Gaming Clans. It is a league that hosts competitive TF2 tournaments.

Trading terminology

These are some of the terms which players use when trading.

A

Adds
Low-value items added to a trade with valuable items to make the trade offer more enticing. Synonym: "sweets."

B

B/O
Abbreviation of "buyout," referring to the price a seller is aiming to sell their item for, usually in pure.
BFTC
Abbreviation for the Burning Flames Team Captain, the most valuable Unusual cosmetic in existence.
Bill's
Shorthand name for the Bill's Hat.
Bot
Automated player accounts that complete trades by an order-type basis. Many websites offer completely automated trading bots to scrapbank or otherwise sell or buy items.
BP
Abbreviation for Backpack. Some servers have a !bp command that allow users to view inventories of others in-game.
Buds
Short for Earbuds, a superannuated currency once valued more than keys due to the fact that Team Fortress 2's old trading system could only fit eight items at a time in each trading window.

C

C/O
Abbreviation of Current Offers. Refers to a list of the current highest or "best" offers according to the seller.
Clean
Slang for items that are worth standard market price or higher due to certain factors that make them more appealing, such as

Craftable
An item that is usable in crafting.
See also: Uncraftable

D

Dirty
Slang for items that are worth lower than market price for certain reasons, such as
  • An uncraftable item that can usually be obtainable through crafting. Such items may have been crafted with uncraftable materials (such as uncraftable Refined Metal) or bought from the Mann Co. Store before the November 29, 2012 Patch.
  • Expensive items such as Unusual cosmetics that have been possessed by a trader marked as a scammer or duplicated by Steam Support.
Duplicated / duped
"Duped" is short for "duplicated." A duplicated item is an item that was literally copied by Steam Support because the player possessing it accidentally deleted it, lost it due to a glitch, or lost it via a scam. Steam's newer policies state that Steam Support will no longer restore items after an accidental deletion, a glitch, or a scam, thus making duplicated items extinct aside from older items. Expensive duplicated items, such as Unusual cosmetics and items of the Collector's quality, are commonly valued at less than their market price. While duplicated items are no different in-game, it is possible to see that an item is duplicated by checking its history on certain trading sites. Cheaper items are usually not valued at less than their market values, however.

E

Effect / Unusual effect
Used to describe the particle effect of an Unusual cosmetic.

Escrow
A measure which prevents traders from obtaining their items until a set period of time after making a trade. Used in the trading community to describe whether they have activated Steam Mobile Authenticator, as trades can be held up to two weeks if either party is deactivated. Generally used in a distasteful tone by the community due to the complications that may arise from waiting 15 days before obtaining the items involved in a trade. Synonym: "trade hold."

G

Gen
Short for "generation." Refers to Unusual effects found from standard Mann Co. Supply Crates in order of their release: First generation effects can be unboxed from Crates #1 to #25, second generation from Crates #26 to #57, and so on. Generally, early generation effects are often the most expensive and sought after, while later generations are worth less.
GFP
Abbreviation for the Strange Professional Killstreak Golden Frying Pan, the most valuable weapon in existence.
Glitched
An item that was obtained or modified by the use of a glitch. Certain items have been able to become painted, tradable, uncraftable, or other unique states when they were never intended to be. A glitched item is usually valued at a much higher price than its normal counterpart.

H

Highball
To propose a relatively higher-valued offer when trading items.
History
A term describing an item's previous owners. The history of an item can be inspected using certain trading websites and can determine whether it has been duplicated. Expensive items may be valued higher if they have a short history, and items with histories containing a trader marked as a scammer may be valued less.
HOUWAR
Abbreviation for the Hat of Undeniable Wealth And Respect, a valuable cosmetic occasionally used in place of currency.

I

ID
A specific number generated for every item in TF2, used to keep track of each item. It changes every time an item leaves an inventory or is modified (using a Name Tag, Description Tag, Paint Can, Killstreak Kit, or another item that can be used to modify another item).
An ID given to an item when it is first created (e.g., crafted, purchased, or gifted). Unlike the item ID, this ID never changes and can be used to determine if an item has been duplicated.

K

Key
Short for a standard Mann Co. Supply Crate Key, a currency in trading.
KS / Spec KS / Pro KS
Short for the Killstreak quality of a special weapon, from the order of Killstreak, Specialized Killstreak, and Professional Killstreak.

L

Lowball / lowballer
Lowball: The act of proposing an offer at a lower value than the seller's asking price.
Lowballer: A person who lowballs. The term "lowballer" is also often used to describe players who attempt to sell regular Unique weapons for expensive items, which is a form of sharking.

M

Max's Head / Max Head / Max
Abbreviation for the [[Max's Severed Head], a valuable cosmetic occasionally used in place of currency.

O

Offer
Short for a trade offer received or sent through Steam.
Overpay
Paying more than the asking price for an item. Usually occurs when a buyer is offering items rather than pure (raw currency, such as keys and metal). Usually, traders want a certain percentage added to the total value of the trade if the buyer pays in items rather than pure.

P

Pure
Paying in raw trade currency, such as Mann Co. Supply Crate Keys or metal. Most sellers prefer selling their items for pure, as it is easier and less time-consuming to buy other items they want with pure keys or metal, as opposed to having to resell the items gained from a trade for Keys or metal. Often, Australium weapons and common expensive cosmetics such as the Bill's Hat, Max's Severed Head, and Hat of Undeniable Wealth and Respect will suffice as an alternative to paying in Keys or metal, due to these cosmetics being expensive, common, and easy to resell.

R

Rec
Short for Reclaimed Metal.
See also: scrap

Ref
Short for Refined Metal.
See also: scrap
Robo-effect
Unusual effects unboxed from a Robocrate.

S

Scam / scammer / scamming
Scam
A fraudulent method to steal others' items.
Scammer
A person who performs a scam.
SCM
An acronym for the Steam Community Market.

Scrap
Short for Scrap Metal.
See also: Rec and Ref
Scrapbanking
Refers to the practice of trading two unwanted craftable weapons in exchange for one Scrap Metal, and vice-versa.

Set
A term to describe selling multiple items in a single, themed set. Each item may be named or have Unusual effects which match the motif of the set (such as an entirely white Scout cosmetic set with a Blizzardy Storm hat, to fit with a snowboarder motif). Oftentimes, this is used to quickly sell an entire valuable set instead of selling each item one at a time, although in most cases it takes significantly longer to sell as most buyers only want a single item or multiple items in the set.
Sharking / shark
Sharking: A method of scamming which involves lying about the value of items to obtain items at cheaper prices.
Shark: A person who performs sharking.
Signed
An item that was Gift Wrapped or crafted by a player, thus including the name of the user in the description of the item. These "autographed" items are typically signed by influential figures in the Team Fortress 2 community (such as famous YouTube content creators, traders, or players in competitive leagues) to raise the value of the item due to the demand of fans.
Sparkle
Used to describe rare tradable items with the Community Sparkle effect, such as a Community Sparkle Vintage Lugermorph, some of which, although intended to be untradable, became tradable due to a glitch.

Sweets
Low-value items added to a trade with valuable items to make the trade offer more enticing, "sweetening" the deal. Synonym: "adds."

T

TC
An acronym for the Team Captain cosmetic.
Theme
Refers to Unusual cosmetics which supposedly have a fitting Unusual effect, to increase appeal and improve its selling price. Such examples include a Stormy Storm Hard Counter (an umbrella hat with rain) or an Aces High Hat of Cards (a playing card-themed hat),
See also: Set
Tier
An unofficial classification of rank when considering the pairing of Unusual hats with their effects. Sought-after hats with expensive effects are considered high tier and sell for very high prices, with some considered "God Tier" due to their rarity (eg. Burning Team Captain), while the opposite is true for unpopular hats or effects (eg. Nuts and Bolts Dread Knot).
Trader
Refers to players who are heavily involved in Team Fortress 2 trading.

Trade hold
See Escrow.

U

Uncraftable
An item that is not usable in crafting. Uncraftable items are usually valued at more than the craftable versions since the uncraftable version of most items is rarer than the craftable version.
See also: Craftable
Unus
Short for "Unusual," referring to an item of the Unusual item quality.

External links

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