Architecture, Design Patterns and Graphics
dependency injection
noun
Meaning
A technique where an object receives the things it needs, such as a database client, from outside instead of creating them itself, which makes code easier to test.
Where you use it
Often shortened to DI. Frameworks such as Spring, ASP.NET Core and Angular have built-in DI containers. With dependency injection, tests can pass in a mock instead of the real service. You inject a dependency, often through the constructor.
Examples
Thanks to dependency injection, the tests use a fake payment client instead of the real one.
Don't create the logger inside the class; use dependency injection and pass it in.
Common phrases
DI container · constructor injection · inject a dependency · use dependency injection
More about this term →design doc
noun
Meaning
A document written before building something big that explains the problem, the proposed solution, the other options considered and their trade-offs, so others can review it.
Where you use it
Short for design document; some companies call it an RFC or a tech spec. Engineers write, share and review a design doc before coding starts. Typical sections are Goals, Non-goals, Proposal, Alternatives and Open questions.
Examples
Before we touch the database schema, please write a short design doc and share it with the team.
Several people commented on the design doc and suggested using a queue instead.
Common phrases
write a design doc · review a design doc · design doc template · non-goals
More about this term →over-engineering
noun
Meaning
Making a solution more complex than the problem needs, for example adding layers, options or flexibility for future needs that may never come.
Where you use it
A common review comment: 'This feels like over-engineering.' The adjective 'over-engineered' is common too. Related ideas are YAGNI ('You Aren't Gonna Need It') and 'keep it simple'. The opposite risk is a quick hack that is hard to extend.
Examples
A plugin system for two report types sounds like over-engineering to me.
Our config system is a case of over-engineering: nobody uses half of its options.
Common phrases
avoid over-engineering · over-engineered solution · YAGNI · keep it simple
More about this term →proof of concept
noun
Meaning
A small, quick version of an idea, built only to show that it can work technically before the team spends time building it properly.
Where you use it
Usually shortened to PoC or POC. A proof of concept is often thrown away afterwards; turning it directly into production code is a common mistake. People build or put together a PoC and then present the results.
Examples
Let's build a quick proof of concept to see if the library can handle Turkish characters.
The proof of concept worked, but it needs a proper design before it goes anywhere near production.
Common phrases
build a proof of concept · PoC phase · throwaway proof of concept · proof-of-concept results
More about this term →game engine
noun
Meaning
A software framework that gives developers ready-made systems for graphics, physics, sound, input and scripting, so they can build a game without writing everything from scratch.
Where you use it
Used constantly in job ads, studio meetings and tutorials. Well-known examples are Unity, Unreal Engine and Godot; large studios often have an in-house engine. You choose, build on, license or switch engines.
Examples
We're prototyping in Godot first, then we'll decide whether to move to a bigger game engine.
The studio built its own game engine because no commercial one handled huge crowds well.
Common phrases
choose a game engine · in-house engine · engine license · switch engines
More about this term →asset
noun
Meaning
Any piece of content used in a game, such as a 3D model, texture, sound effect, animation or music track, usually stored as a file and imported into the engine.
Where you use it
Used all day by artists, designers and programmers. You create, import, reuse, optimize and replace assets; placeholder assets are temporary ones used until the final art arrives. Engines also have asset stores that sell ready-made content.
Examples
These are placeholder assets, so don't worry about how the trees look yet.
We bought a few environment assets to save time on the prototype.
Usage note
In finance an asset is something valuable that a company owns. In game development it simply means a content file, with no money meaning.
Common phrases
placeholder asset · import assets · asset store · art assets · asset pipeline
More about this term →frame rate
noun
Meaning
The number of images a game draws on the screen each second, measured in frames per second (fps). A higher, steadier frame rate makes the game look and feel smoother.
Where you use it
Common targets are 30 and 60 fps on consoles and higher on gaming PCs. People say the frame rate drops, dips or stutters, or that it is locked or capped at a number. Performance reviews and bug reports mention it all the time.
Examples
The frame rate drops below 30 when too many enemies are on screen.
We locked the frame rate at 60 to keep the controls consistent.
Usage note
FPS can also mean first-person shooter, a game genre. The context usually makes it clear: '60 FPS' versus 'a new FPS'.
Common phrases
stable frame rate · frame rate drop · lock the frame rate · target frame rate · uncapped frame rate
More about this term →game design document
noun
Meaning
A document that describes the planned game in detail, including its concept, mechanics, story, levels, characters and controls, so the whole team builds the same game.
Where you use it
Usually called the GDD. Modern teams keep it as a living document in a wiki and update it often, instead of writing one huge file at the start. Designers write it; the rest of the team reads it and asks questions.
Examples
Before you add a new weapon, check the game design document for the damage rules.
Our game design document is just a wiki now, and each feature has its own page.
Common phrases
write a game design document · update the GDD · living document · one-page design document
More about this term →NPC
abbreviation
Meaning
Short for non-player character: any character in the game that is controlled by the computer, not by a player, such as a shopkeeper, a quest giver or an enemy guard.
Where you use it
Said letter by letter: N-P-C. Designers talk about NPC behavior, dialogue and schedules; programmers about NPC AI and pathfinding. Some teams use NPC only for friendly characters and call hostile ones enemies or mobs.
Examples
The NPCs in the market should react when the player draws a weapon.
We gave every NPC a daily schedule, so the town feels alive.
Common phrases
NPC dialogue · NPC behavior · friendly NPC · quest-giving NPC · NPC AI
More about this term →HUD
abbreviation
Meaning
Short for heads-up display: the information shown on top of the game view while you play, such as health, ammo, a mini-map and the score.
Where you use it
Usually pronounced as one word that rhymes with 'mud'. UI designers talk about a clean, cluttered or minimal HUD, and some games let players hide it. The term comes from aircraft displays that show data in front of the pilot.
Examples
The HUD is too cluttered; players can't see the enemies behind all those icons.
We added an option to hide the HUD in photo mode.
Common phrases
minimal HUD · cluttered HUD · hide the HUD · HUD element
More about this term →sprite
noun
Meaning
A 2D image used as an object in a game, such as a character, an enemy, a coin or an explosion. Several sprites shown one after another create an animation.
Where you use it
Common in 2D and mobile games and in pixel art. Artists draw sprites and pack them into a sprite sheet, one image holding many frames, to save memory and draw calls. The word rhymes with 'bright'.
Examples
The main character's sprite has eight frames for the run animation.
Can you pack all the enemy sprites into one sprite sheet?
Common phrases
sprite sheet · sprite animation · pixel art sprite · draw a sprite
More about this term →collision detection
noun
Meaning
The part of a game that checks whether two objects touch or overlap, for example a bullet hitting an enemy or the player landing on a platform.
Where you use it
Handled by the physics engine using simple invisible shapes called colliders, such as boxes, spheres and capsules. Collision response is what happens next, like bouncing or taking damage. Bugs here let players fall through floors or get stuck in walls.
Examples
Fast bullets sometimes pass through thin walls because collision detection only checks once per physics step.
We simplified the collision detection on the rocks to a few boxes.
Common phrases
continuous collision detection · collision mesh · collision layers · collision response
More about this term →shader
noun
Meaning
A small program that runs on the graphics card and decides how surfaces look, for example their color, lighting, shine and transparency, or effects like water and fire.
Where you use it
Written in shading languages such as HLSL or GLSL, or built visually in shader graphs. Technical artists and graphics programmers write, compile and optimize shaders. In some PC games, players notice shader compilation as stutter.
Examples
The water shader looks great, but it's too expensive for mobile.
I wrote a simple shader that makes enemies flash white when they get hit.
Usage note
Despite the name, shaders do far more than shading. Pronounce it SHAY-der, not 'shadder'.
Common phrases
write a shader · shader graph · water shader · compile shaders · shader compilation stutter
More about this term →script
noun
Meaning
A piece of code that controls how something in the game behaves, such as a door that opens, an enemy that patrols or a quest that starts, usually attached to objects in the engine.
Where you use it
In Unity scripts are written in C#, in Godot usually in GDScript, and in Unreal designers often use Blueprints instead of text scripts. Designers who write gameplay logic are sometimes called scripters. The verb is script: to script an event.
Examples
Attach the health script to the player prefab and set the max value to 100.
The bridge collapse is a scripted event, so it happens the same way every time.
Usage note
Script can also mean the written dialogue of a game, as in a film script. Narrative designers and programmers both use the word, with different meanings.
Common phrases
write a script · attach a script · scripted event · gameplay script · scripting language
More about this term →game loop
noun
Meaning
The code cycle at the heart of every game that runs many times per second: read the player's input, update the game world, then draw the new frame.
Where you use it
A programming term. In an engine you rarely write it yourself; instead you put code in functions the loop calls, such as Update in Unity or Tick in Unreal. Physics often runs in a separate loop with a fixed time step.
Examples
Anything heavy inside the game loop will hurt the frame rate.
For our course project, we wrote our own game loop in C++ without an engine.
Usage note
The game loop is about code; the core loop is about what the player does. Turkish uses 'döngü' for both, so be precise in English.
Common phrases
main game loop · fixed time step · update loop · inside the game loop
More about this term →scene
noun
Meaning
One part of a game project in the engine, such as a menu, a level or a test area, that contains the objects, lights and cameras placed in it.
Where you use it
Unity and Godot use the word scene; Unreal calls the same thing a level or map. You open, save, load, unload and switch scenes. Two people editing the same scene file at once often causes merge conflicts.
Examples
Please don't touch the main scene today; I'm reorganizing the lighting.
Loading the next scene in the background lets us remove the loading screen.
Common phrases
load a scene · main scene · test scene · scene hierarchy · switch scenes
More about this term →prefab
noun
Meaning
A saved, reusable game object with all its parts and settings, such as an enemy or a door, that you can place many times; editing the prefab updates every copy.
Where you use it
A Unity term that many developers also use for similar systems in other engines; Unreal uses Blueprint classes and Godot uses saved scenes for the same idea. You create, edit, apply changes to and override prefabs.
Examples
Make the torch a prefab so we can change its light radius in one place.
Someone overrode the enemy prefab in this level, so the fix didn't apply here.
Usage note
Short for prefabricated. Stress the first syllable: PREE-fab.
Common phrases
create a prefab · prefab variant · apply to prefab · prefab override · nested prefab
More about this term →physics engine
noun
Meaning
The system that simulates real-world physics in a game, such as gravity, collisions, friction and forces, so objects fall, bounce and push each other believably.
Where you use it
Usually part of the game engine or added as middleware; well-known ones include PhysX, Havok, Jolt and, for 2D, Box2D. Programmers tune its settings, and designers often work around it to make movement feel good rather than realistic.
Examples
We don't use the physics engine for the player; the character controller is custom.
The physics engine goes crazy when two crates spawn inside each other.
Common phrases
physics simulation · physics step · tune the physics · 2D physics
More about this term →hitbox
noun
Meaning
An invisible shape around a character, or part of one, that the game uses to decide whether an attack or bullet has hit. It is often simpler than the visible model.
Where you use it
Very common in fighting games and shooters, where players complain about hitboxes being too big or inconsistent. Some teams call the area that can take damage the hurtbox and the attacking area the hitbox. Developers turn on a debug view to see them.
Examples
The sword's hitbox lasts two frames longer than the animation, so it feels unfair.
Headshots didn't register because the head hitbox was offset.
Common phrases
head hitbox · hitbox size · show hitboxes · hitbox and hurtbox
More about this term →texture
noun
Meaning
A 2D image wrapped around a 3D model to give it color and surface detail, such as wood grain, skin or rust. Extra textures can control shine, bumps and roughness.
Where you use it
Artists create, paint, compress and apply textures. Texture resolution, such as 2K or 4K, has a big effect on memory, so teams set texture budgets. Players notice blurry textures, or textures that appear late, called texture pop-in.
Examples
Halve the texture size on the background props; nobody gets that close.
The rock texture repeats too obviously on the cliff.
Common phrases
high-resolution texture · texture memory · texture compression · apply a texture · texture streaming
More about this term →polycount
noun
Meaning
The number of polygons, usually triangles, that make up a 3D model or a whole scene. Fewer polygons are faster to draw but show less detail.
Where you use it
Also written poly count. 3D artists work within a polycount budget for each character or prop, and talk about high-poly and low-poly models. Low-poly is also the name of an art style with visible flat faces.
Examples
Keep the polycount under 20,000 triangles for each main character.
The polycount of the city scene is fine; the real problem is the number of draw calls.
Common phrases
polycount budget · high polycount · reduce the polycount · low-poly model
More about this term →optimization
noun
Meaning
Work that makes a game run faster and use less memory, battery or bandwidth, for example by simplifying models, reducing draw calls or rewriting slow code.
Where you use it
A constant topic before launch and in reviews of PC ports. People say a game is well or poorly optimized. Good optimization starts with measuring in a profiler, not guessing. The verb is optimize.
Examples
We have two weeks of optimization before the console submission.
Most of the optimization work was on the crowd system, not the graphics.
Usage note
British English also spells it optimisation.
Common phrases
performance optimization · optimization pass · poorly optimized · memory optimization
More about this term →spawn
verb
Meaning
To make a character, enemy or item appear in the game world, or to appear in it. A spawn point is the place where this happens.
Where you use it
Used with an object (the game spawns enemies) and without one (enemies spawn behind you); also a noun. Respawn means to come back after dying. Level designers place spawn points and tune spawn rates; players complain about spawn camping.
Examples
Enemies shouldn't spawn where the player can see them appear.
I moved the team spawn points further from the middle of the map.
Usage note
Rhymes with 'lawn'. In general English, spawn means to lay eggs (fish and frogs do this) or to give rise to something, which explains the game meaning.
Common phrases
spawn point · spawn enemies · respawn · spawn rate · spawn camping
More about this term →checkpoint
noun
Meaning
A point in a level where the game saves the player's progress, so after failing or dying they start again from there instead of from the beginning.
Where you use it
Level designers decide checkpoint placement to control frustration, and players say a game has fair or unfair checkpoints. You reach or hit a checkpoint and restart from the last checkpoint; autosave is the system behind it.
Examples
Add a checkpoint before the boss; nobody wants to replay ten minutes of platforming.
The checkpoint saved after the player had already lost most of their health.
Common phrases
checkpoint system · reach a checkpoint · checkpoint placement · restart from the last checkpoint
More about this term →open world
noun
Meaning
A large game world that players can explore freely and in almost any order, instead of moving through a fixed series of levels.
Where you use it
Used as a noun and, with a hyphen, as an adjective: an open-world RPG. Open-world games need streaming technology, many points of interest and careful navigation design. The opposite is a linear game.
Examples
Building an open world with a team of twelve is extremely risky.
The map is an open world, but the story missions are quite linear.
Common phrases
open-world game · open-world RPG · explore the open world · seamless open world
More about this term →greybox
noun
Meaning
An early version of a level built from simple grey shapes with no final art, used to test layout, scale, routes and timing before artists spend time on it.
Where you use it
Also called a blockout, and spelled graybox in American English. It is also a verb: to greybox a level. Level designers greybox, playtest and iterate many times before handing a level to environment artists.
Examples
The greybox already shows that the bridge is too long to be fun.
Let's playtest the greybox before anyone starts modeling buildings.
Common phrases
greybox a level · greybox phase · blockout · greybox layout
More about this term →critical path
noun
Meaning
The shortest route through a level or game that the player must follow to finish it, as opposed to optional side areas, secrets and side quests.
Where you use it
Level designers make the critical path clear with lighting, landmarks and the shape of the level, and QA tests it first. A secret is 'off the critical path'. In project management the term has a different meaning: the chain of tasks that sets the end date.
Examples
The critical path takes about 12 hours; with side quests it's closer to 40.
Players kept leaving the critical path because the exit was too dark to notice.
Common phrases
off the critical path · follow the critical path · critical path time · side content
More about this term →procedural generation
noun
Meaning
Creating game content such as maps, dungeons, terrain or loot automatically with algorithms and rules, instead of building every piece by hand.
Where you use it
Common in roguelikes and survival games, where every run is different; often shortened to procgen. A seed value lets the same world be generated again. Designers mix procedural generation with handmade pieces so the content does not feel random and empty.
Examples
The dungeons use procedural generation, but every boss room is handmade.
Because of procedural generation, QA needs the seed to reproduce a broken map.
Common phrases
procedurally generated · random seed · procgen · generate levels
More about this term →navmesh
noun
Meaning
Short for navigation mesh: a simplified map of the walkable surfaces in a level that game AI uses to find paths and move characters around obstacles.
Where you use it
Engines build or bake the navmesh from the level geometry. Level designers check it when NPCs get stuck, walk into walls or cannot reach the player. Pathfinding algorithms such as A* run on top of it.
Examples
The guards can't reach the roof because the navmesh has a gap near the ladder.
Rebuild the navmesh after you move those crates.
Common phrases
bake the navmesh · navmesh agent · rebuild the navmesh · navmesh link
More about this term →rigid body
noun
Meaning
An object in the physics engine that keeps its shape and is moved by forces such as gravity and collisions, for example a falling crate or a thrown grenade.
Where you use it
Unity's component for it is called Rigidbody, written as one word. Developers add a rigid body to an object, set its mass and drag, and decide whether it is kinematic (moved by code) or simulated. Soft bodies, such as cloth, bend and change shape.
Examples
Add a rigid body to the barrel so it rolls when the player kicks it.
Too many active rigid bodies in one room made the physics step very slow.
Common phrases
add a rigid body · rigid body physics · kinematic rigid body · set the mass
More about this term →raycast
noun
Meaning
A check in which the game sends an invisible straight line from a point in a direction to find what it hits first. It is used for shooting, line of sight and ground detection.
Where you use it
Also a verb: raycast from the camera to the mouse position. Programmers talk about a raycast hitting or missing, ray length and layer masks. Hitscan weapons, which hit instantly, are usually made with raycasts.
Examples
We do a short raycast down from the feet to check if the player is on the ground.
The enemy raycasts to the player before shooting, so it never shoots through walls.
Common phrases
cast a ray · raycast hit · layer mask · hitscan weapon
More about this term →ragdoll
noun
Meaning
A physics setup in which a character's body becomes a set of connected parts that fall and react to forces realistically, usually when the character dies or is knocked down.
Where you use it
Often called ragdoll physics. The game switches from animation to ragdoll at the moment of death. Funny ragdoll bugs, with bodies flying or twisting, are popular in online clips, so teams limit forces and joint angles.
Examples
When the enemy dies, switch off the animator and turn on the ragdoll.
One ragdoll got stuck in the wall and started shaking violently.
Common phrases
ragdoll physics · switch to ragdoll · ragdoll bug · active ragdoll
More about this term →keyframe
noun
Meaning
A frame in an animation where the animator sets an important pose or value; the software then fills in the movement between keyframes automatically.
Where you use it
Animators set, add, move and delete keyframes on a timeline. Filling in the frames between them is called interpolation or in-betweening. Keyframe animation is the opposite of motion capture, where movement is recorded from real actors.
Examples
Move the contact keyframe two frames earlier so the punch feels faster.
All the creature animations are keyframed by hand; we didn't use motion capture.
Common phrases
set a keyframe · keyframe animation · add a keyframe · animation timeline
More about this term →rig
noun
Meaning
The hidden skeleton of bones and controls inside a 3D model that animators move to pose and animate it, like the strings of a puppet.
Where you use it
Built by riggers or technical artists. Also a verb: to rig a character. Skinning connects the model's surface to the bones. Problems in the rig show up as twisted elbows or stretched shoulders in animation.
Examples
The character rig needs extra bones for the cape and the hair.
Can you rig the new monster before the animators start on Monday?
Common phrases
character rig · rig a character · facial rig · skinning · rigger
More about this term →draw call
noun
Meaning
A command the CPU sends to the graphics card to draw a group of polygons with one material. Too many draw calls per frame can slow a game down.
Where you use it
A key performance number on mobile and older hardware. Programmers reduce draw calls with batching, texture atlases and combined meshes. They say a scene has too many draw calls or is CPU-bound.
Examples
The market scene has 3,000 draw calls; we need to get it under 500 for mobile.
Batching the street lamps cut our draw calls by a third.
Common phrases
reduce draw calls · draw call count · batch draw calls · CPU-bound
More about this term →GPU
abbreviation
Meaning
Short for graphics processing unit: the chip that renders a game's images by running shaders and drawing millions of pixels every frame. The CPU handles most of the game logic.
Where you use it
Developers say a game is GPU-bound when the graphics card is the bottleneck and CPU-bound when the processor is. Minimum and recommended specs list a GPU model. In everyday speech players say graphics card.
Examples
We're GPU-bound in the forest; the foliage shader is the main cost.
The minimum spec requires a GPU with at least 4 GB of video memory.
Common phrases
GPU-bound · GPU memory · GPU time · minimum spec GPU
More about this term →post-processing
noun
Meaning
Visual effects applied to the whole image after the scene has been rendered, such as bloom, motion blur, color grading and depth of field.
Where you use it
Artists use post-processing volumes to change the mood of an area. Effects such as motion blur and film grain can often be turned off in the settings because some players dislike them. They cost GPU time on every frame.
Examples
Most of the moody look comes from post-processing, not the textures.
Add an option to turn off post-processing effects like motion blur.
Common phrases
post-processing effects · post-processing volume · color grading · motion blur · bloom
More about this term →particle system
noun
Meaning
A tool that creates effects such as fire, smoke, sparks, rain and magic by producing and moving many small images or shapes called particles.
Where you use it
Built by VFX (visual effects) artists, who set the emission rate, lifetime, size and how color changes over time. Large particle effects cause overdraw and can hurt performance, so they are checked in the profiler.
Examples
The explosion uses three particle systems: fire, smoke and flying debris.
Cut the particle count in the rain system; it's killing the frame rate on Switch.
Common phrases
particle effect · particle count · emission rate · VFX artist
More about this term →level of detail
noun
Meaning
A technique that swaps a model for simpler versions as it gets farther from the camera, so distant objects use fewer polygons and the game runs faster.
Where you use it
Usually called LOD. Artists make LOD0 (full detail), LOD1, LOD2 and so on, and engines can also generate them automatically. Players notice LOD popping when a model suddenly changes as they move closer.
Examples
Each tree has four levels of detail, and the last one is just a flat card.
Adjust the level of detail distances so players don't see the rocks pop.
Common phrases
LOD levels · LOD popping · generate LODs · LOD distance
More about this term →bake
verb
Meaning
To calculate something expensive, such as lighting, shadows or navigation data, before the game runs and save the result, so it does not need to be computed in real time.
Where you use it
Most often heard as 'bake the lighting', which produces lightmaps. Baked lighting looks good and is cheap at runtime, but unlike real-time or dynamic lighting it cannot change. Artists also bake normal maps from high-poly models.
Examples
Don't move any walls; I just baked the lighting for the whole level.
Baked shadows look great, but they don't update when the door opens.
Common phrases
bake the lighting · baked lighting · bake a lightmap · bake normal maps
More about this term →profiler
noun
Meaning
A tool that measures where a game spends its time and memory, frame by frame, so developers can find what makes it slow instead of guessing.
Where you use it
Every major engine has a built-in profiler, and platforms provide their own tools. Developers profile a build, look for spikes and check CPU and GPU time per frame. 'Profile first, then optimize' is a common rule.
Examples
The profiler shows a 40 ms spike every time an enemy spawns.
Run the profiler on the actual device; the numbers in the editor are misleading.
Common phrases
run the profiler · CPU profiler · memory profiler · profile a build · frame spike
More about this term →Agile and Team Workflow
feature
noun
Meaning
A piece of functionality that users can see or use, such as a search bar, dark mode or the option to export a report.
Where you use it
Teams plan, build, ship and release features. You hear it in planning meetings ('Is this feature in scope?'), in branch names such as feature/login and in phrases like 'feature request' and 'feature freeze'.
Examples
The export feature is almost done; I just need to handle large files.
A customer sent a feature request for two-factor login.
We're in a feature freeze until the release, so only bug fixes are allowed.
Common phrases
build a feature · ship a feature · feature request · feature freeze · new feature
More about this term →ticket
noun
Meaning
A record in a tracking tool such as Jira that describes one piece of work, like a bug, task or feature, and shows who owns it and its status.
Where you use it
Teams create, assign, pick up, update and close tickets. Ticket numbers appear in branch names and commit messages (PROJ-142). 'Issue', 'task' and 'card' are used for the same idea in different tools.
Examples
Can you create a ticket for that so we don't forget it?
I picked up the ticket about slow search results this morning.
Usage note
In software, a ticket is a work item, not something you buy for a bus or a concert. Native speakers also call it an 'issue'.
Common phrases
create a ticket · pick up a ticket · assign a ticket · close a ticket · ticket number
More about this term →sprint
noun
Meaning
A fixed period, usually one or two weeks, in which a team commits to finishing a chosen set of work items.
Where you use it
Comes from Scrum. Teams talk about sprint planning, the sprint goal, 'this sprint' and 'next sprint', and the sprint review at the end. Unfinished work 'carries over' to the next sprint.
Examples
We can't fit the reporting feature into this sprint.
Two tickets carried over from the last sprint.
Sprint planning starts at ten on Monday.
Common phrases
sprint planning · sprint goal · sprint review · this sprint · carry over to the next sprint
More about this term →stand-up
noun
Meaning
A short daily team meeting, often 15 minutes, where each person says what they did, what they will do next and whether anything is blocking them.
Where you use it
Also called 'daily stand-up' or just 'daily'. People say 'at stand-up' and, when a topic needs a longer discussion, 'Let's take that offline after stand-up.'
Examples
I'll mention the database issue at stand-up tomorrow.
Let's keep stand-up short and discuss the details afterwards.
Usage note
The noun is written 'stand-up' or 'standup'; the two-word verb 'stand up' means to get on your feet.
Common phrases
daily stand-up · at stand-up · stand-up meeting · skip stand-up
More about this term →requirement
noun
Meaning
Something the software must do, or a condition it must meet, as agreed with users, clients or the product team.
Where you use it
Usually plural. Teams gather, clarify, change and document requirements. 'Functional requirements' describe what the system does; 'non-functional requirements' cover speed, security and reliability.
Examples
The requirements changed twice during the sprint, so we lost a few days.
Before I start, can we clarify the requirements for the export format?
Common phrases
gather requirements · clarify the requirements · meet the requirements · non-functional requirements
More about this term →backlog
noun
Meaning
The ordered list of work a team has not started yet, such as features, bugs and improvements, with the most important items at the top.
Where you use it
Product owners add items to the backlog, prioritize it and clean it up in 'backlog refinement' sessions. 'Put it in the backlog' often means 'not now, maybe later'. Scrum separates the product backlog from the sprint backlog.
Examples
Good idea, but it's not urgent. Let's add it to the backlog.
We have over 300 tickets in the backlog, and half of them are out of date.
Usage note
In general English, a backlog is a pile of work that is late or waiting, so the word can sound slightly negative outside agile teams.
Common phrases
add to the backlog · product backlog · sprint backlog · backlog refinement · prioritize the backlog
More about this term →estimate
verb
Meaning
To judge roughly how much time or effort a task will take before you start it. As a noun, 'an estimate' is that rough figure.
Where you use it
Teams estimate tickets in hours, days or story points during planning. Managers ask 'What's your estimate?' or 'Can you give me a rough estimate?' Estimates are guesses, so people usually add a buffer.
Examples
I'd estimate two days for the backend part and one for the UI.
Our first estimate was too optimistic; the migration took three weeks.
Usage note
The verb ends in /eɪt/ (EST-i-mate), but the noun usually ends in /ət/ (EST-i-mut). Listen for the difference in meetings.
Common phrases
estimate a task · rough estimate · give an estimate · estimate in story points
More about this term →blocker
noun
Meaning
A problem that stops someone from continuing their work until it is solved, such as missing access, an unanswered question or a broken environment.
Where you use it
A standard stand-up word: 'Any blockers?', 'No blockers from me.' People also say 'I'm blocked on the API' or 'This is blocking the release.' In bug trackers, 'Blocker' is also the highest priority level.
Examples
My only blocker is access to the production logs.
I'm blocked until the design team sends the final screens.
Common phrases
any blockers · no blockers · be blocked on · release blocker · remove a blocker
More about this term →user story
noun
Meaning
A short description of a feature from the user's point of view, often written as 'As a [type of user], I want [goal] so that [reason]'.
Where you use it
Product owners write user stories; developers estimate and split them. Each story usually has 'acceptance criteria' that say when it counts as done. People often just say 'story'.
Examples
The user story says customers want to save their cart for later.
This user story is too big. Can we split it into two?
Common phrases
write a user story · split a user story · acceptance criteria · estimate a user story
More about this term →agile
adjective
Meaning
Describing a way of working in short cycles, delivering small pieces often and changing plans based on feedback, instead of following one long fixed plan.
Where you use it
Often capitalized when used as a noun: 'We use Agile', 'Agile coach'. Scrum and Kanban are the best-known agile methods. People also say 'agile team', 'agile mindset' and, critically, 'agile in name only'.
Examples
We follow an agile process with two-week sprints and a demo at the end.
Being agile doesn't mean we never plan; it means we plan in smaller steps.
Usage note
American English usually says AJ-ul /ˈædʒəl/, while British English often says AJ-ile /ˈædʒaɪl/.
Common phrases
agile methodology · agile team · agile process · agile coach
More about this term →sync up
phrasal verb
Meaning
To have a short meeting or chat to share updates and make sure everyone has the same information and plan. Also a noun: 'a quick sync'.
Where you use it
Very common in remote and hybrid teams, in chat and calendar invites: 'Can we sync up after lunch?', 'Let's have a quick sync with design.' 'Sync' on its own is used the same way.
Examples
Let's sync up tomorrow morning before the client call.
I had a quick sync with the backend team, and the API will be ready on Friday.
Usage note
'Sync', short for 'synchronize', sounds exactly like 'sink': /sɪŋk/.
Common phrases
sync up with · a quick sync · weekly sync · sync up on
More about this term →out of scope
phrase
Meaning
Not part of the work that was agreed for a project, sprint or ticket, so it will not be done now, even if it is a good idea.
Where you use it
A polite way to say 'not now' in meetings, tickets and reviews: 'That's out of scope for this PR.' The opposite is 'in scope'. 'Scope creep' is when more and more work slowly gets added to a project.
Examples
Good point, but changing the database is out of scope for this sprint.
Mobile support is out of scope for the first version; we'll add it later.
Common phrases
out of scope for · in scope · scope creep · define the scope
More about this term →Scrum
noun
Meaning
A popular agile framework in which a small team works in short, fixed periods called sprints, with set roles and regular meetings to plan and review the work.
Where you use it
Its roles are the Product Owner, the Scrum Master and the developers; its events include sprint planning, the daily scrum, the sprint review and the retrospective. Teams say 'we do Scrum'. The name comes from rugby.
Examples
We use Scrum with two-week sprints and a retrospective at the end of each one.
Our Scrum Master makes sure the stand-up stays under fifteen minutes.
Common phrases
Scrum Master · Scrum team · daily scrum · Scrum framework
More about this term →retrospective
noun
Meaning
A meeting at the end of a sprint or project where the team talks about what went well, what went badly and what to change next time.
Where you use it
Usually shortened to 'retro'. Common formats ask 'What went well? What didn't? What will we try?' The result is a few action items. It should be a safe place for honest feedback, not for blaming people.
Examples
In the retrospective, everyone agreed that the sprint goal was too big.
Let's bring up the flaky tests in Friday's retrospective.
Common phrases
sprint retrospective · run a retrospective · retro action items · bring something up in the retro
More about this term →prioritize
verb
Meaning
To decide which tasks are most important or urgent and should be done first, especially when there is not enough time for everything.
Where you use it
Product owners prioritize the backlog, and developers ask 'How should I prioritize these?' Common phrases: 'high priority', 'top priority', 'deprioritize', 'prioritize X over Y'. British English also writes 'prioritise'.
Examples
We need to prioritize the security fix over the new dashboard.
Can you help me prioritize these five tickets? I can't finish them all this week.
Common phrases
prioritize the backlog · prioritize X over Y · top priority · deprioritize
More about this term →acceptance criteria
noun
Meaning
A list of specific conditions that a feature or user story must meet before the team and the product owner agree that it is done.
Where you use it
Written in the ticket, often in the form 'Given… When… Then…'. Testers use them to check the work. Developers ask 'What are the acceptance criteria?' when a ticket is unclear.
Examples
The acceptance criteria say the export must also work for files over 10 MB.
This ticket has no acceptance criteria, so I don't know when it's finished.
Usage note
'Criteria' is plural (singular: criterion), so say 'the acceptance criteria are', not 'is'.
Common phrases
meet the acceptance criteria · define acceptance criteria · write acceptance criteria · Given-When-Then
More about this term →story point
noun
Meaning
A unit that agile teams use to estimate how much effort a task needs, based on its size, complexity and uncertainty rather than on hours.
Where you use it
Teams often use Fibonacci-like numbers (1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13) and play planning poker to agree on them. People say 'that's a three-pointer' or 'that's at least an eight'. Points are meant for planning, not for comparing developers.
Examples
I'd give this ticket five story points; the API part isn't clear yet.
We usually finish about 30 story points per sprint.
Common phrases
estimate in story points · assign story points · planning poker · points per sprint
More about this term →ping
verb
Meaning
To send someone a short message, usually in team chat, to ask a question, remind them or get their attention. Technically, also to test whether a server can be reached.
Where you use it
Very common in Slack and Teams culture: 'Ping me if you get stuck', 'I'll ping the backend team'. It is informal but polite enough for most workplaces. In networking, the ping command checks whether a host responds.
Examples
Ping me when the PR is ready and I'll review it right away.
I pinged the DevOps team about the failing pipeline but haven't heard back.
Common phrases
ping me · ping someone on Slack · ping the team · a quick ping
More about this term →ETA
abbreviation
Meaning
Short for 'estimated time of arrival'. At work it usually means when you expect a task, fix or delivery to be finished.
Where you use it
Managers often ask 'What's the ETA on this?' or 'Any ETA for the fix?' Said letter by letter: E-T-A. A good answer gives a time and a condition: 'ETA end of day, if the review goes smoothly.'
Examples
Do we have an ETA for the payment fix? Customers are asking.
My ETA is Thursday, but it depends on getting access to the test database.
Common phrases
what's the ETA · give an ETA · ETA on the fix · no ETA yet
More about this term →pair programming
noun
Meaning
A way of working in which two developers write code together at one computer or shared screen: one types, while the other reviews and thinks ahead.
Where you use it
The person typing is called the driver and the other the navigator; they switch roles often. It is popular for onboarding, tricky bugs and knowledge sharing. As a verb, people say 'let's pair on this' or 'pair with someone'.
Examples
Pair programming with a senior developer helped me learn the codebase much faster.
We did pair programming over a video call to fix the tricky caching bug.
Common phrases
pair on a task · pair programming session · driver and navigator · remote pairing
More about this term →scope creep
noun
Meaning
The slow, uncontrolled growth of a project's requirements after work has started, as small extra requests keep being added without changing the deadline or budget.
Where you use it
A negative term used by developers and project managers: 'This is scope creep', 'watch out for scope creep'. The usual answer is to write new requests as separate tickets and mark them out of scope for the current sprint.
Examples
Adding export to Excel now would be scope creep, so let's put it in the backlog.
The project was two months late, mostly because of scope creep.
Common phrases
avoid scope creep · watch out for scope creep · a case of scope creep · manage scope
More about this term →stakeholder
noun
Meaning
Any person or group that is affected by a project or has a say in it, such as customers, managers, other teams, the legal team or support.
Where you use it
Developers keep stakeholders informed, get buy-in from stakeholders and present to them in a sprint review. 'Key stakeholders' are the ones whose approval matters most. It is a business word, so it appears often in emails and planning documents.
Examples
We demoed the new search to stakeholders from sales and support on Friday.
Before changing the API, check with every stakeholder who depends on it.
Common phrases
key stakeholders · keep stakeholders informed · stakeholder buy-in · stakeholder meeting
More about this term →product manager
noun
Meaning
The person who decides what a product should do and why, by understanding users and the business, and who guides the team that builds it.
Where you use it
A job title in tech companies, startups and digital teams, usually shortened to PM. Common levels are associate, senior, group and principal product manager. A PM works with design, engineering, data, marketing and sales but usually manages none of them directly.
Examples
Our new product manager spent her first two weeks talking to customers before touching the roadmap.
Ask the product manager of the payments team; she owns the checkout flow.
Usage note
PM can also mean project manager, a different role focused on delivery dates and budgets. If the context does not make it clear, ask.
Common phrases
senior product manager · work as a product manager · technical product manager · report to the product manager
More about this term →roadmap
noun
Meaning
A high-level plan that shows what a product team intends to work on over the coming months or quarters, and why, without detailing every task.
Where you use it
Shared with leadership, sales and customers in different versions. Teams build, update, present and commit to a roadmap. Many PMs prefer roadmaps organized around problems or goals rather than fixed dates, because dates create promises that are hard to keep.
Examples
Offline mode is on the roadmap for Q3, but it isn't a firm commitment yet.
Sales keeps promising features that aren't on the roadmap.
Common phrases
product roadmap · on the roadmap · share the roadmap · roadmap review · update the roadmap
More about this term →MVP
abbreviation
Meaning
Short for minimum viable product: the simplest version of a product that can be released to real users to learn whether the idea is worth building further.
Where you use it
Said letter by letter: M-V-P. The point of an MVP is learning, not just a cheap first release. Teams build, launch and test an MVP, and often argue about how minimal it can be while still being viable.
Examples
For the MVP, we'll skip online payments and send invoices by hand.
The MVP showed us that people wanted the reminders, not the social features.
Usage note
In sports, MVP means most valuable player. In product work it always means minimum viable product.
Common phrases
build an MVP · launch an MVP · test the MVP · MVP scope
More about this term →PRD
abbreviation
Meaning
Short for product requirements document: a document that explains what a feature or product should do, for whom and why, so the whole team works from the same plan.
Where you use it
Written by the PM, usually in Notion, Confluence or Google Docs. A typical PRD covers the problem, goals and success metrics, user stories, requirements, scope and open questions. Teams write, review and sign off on a PRD.
Examples
I'll share the PRD for the referral program by Wednesday.
The PRD doesn't say what happens when the user has no internet connection.
Common phrases
write a PRD · review the PRD · PRD template · sign off on the PRD
More about this term →launch
noun
Meaning
The moment a new product or feature is made available to users, together with the marketing, sales and support activities planned around it.
Where you use it
Also a verb: launch a product. A launch is more than a release: it includes announcements, documentation, training for sales and support, and success metrics. PMs often coordinate a launch checklist across several teams.
Examples
The launch is planned for March 12, right after the trade show.
We launched the Android app two weeks after the iOS version.
Common phrases
product launch · launch date · soft launch · launch plan · launch checklist
More about this term →product owner
noun
Meaning
In Scrum, the person accountable for the product backlog: deciding its order, making items clear and making sure the team works on the most valuable things.
Where you use it
Shortened to PO. In some companies the product manager also plays the product owner role; in others, especially banks and large corporations, they are separate jobs, and the PO works with the development team every day.
Examples
The product owner moved the export story to the top of the backlog.
Check with the product owner before you change the acceptance criteria.
Common phrases
act as product owner · product owner role · ask the product owner · technical product owner
More about this term →use case
noun
Meaning
A specific situation in which someone uses a product to reach a goal, described step by step or as a short scenario.
Where you use it
PMs and sales teams talk about the main use cases of a product and new use cases that customers discover. In requirements work, a use case can also be a formal document listing the actor, the steps and the outcome.
Examples
Our main use case is small teams planning shifts, not hospitals.
A customer showed us a use case we had never thought of: tracking rental equipment.
Common phrases
main use case · use case for · cover a use case · support a use case
More about this term →OKR
abbreviation
Meaning
Short for objectives and key results: a goal-setting method in which a team sets an inspiring objective and two to five measurable results that show progress toward it.
Where you use it
Usually set every quarter and reviewed at the end of it. Teams set, write, track and score OKRs. A key result should be a measurable outcome (raise activation from 30% to 40%), not a task (launch the new onboarding).
Examples
One of our OKRs this quarter is to cut onboarding time in half.
If a feature doesn't support any OKR, why is it on the roadmap?
Usage note
OKR and KPI are not the same. A KPI is a number you keep watching; an OKR is a goal for a set period that says how much you want to change something.
Common phrases
set OKRs · team OKRs · quarterly OKRs · OKR planning · score OKRs
More about this term →epic
noun
Meaning
A large piece of work that is too big for one sprint and is broken down into several smaller user stories, such as “Multi-currency support”.
Where you use it
Used in Jira and similar tools to group related stories. PMs create, break down and close epics, and report progress on them to stakeholders. In everyday English epic means heroic or great; in agile work it only means a large body of work.
Examples
The new checkout epic has twelve stories, and eight are done.
Let's break this epic down before sprint planning.
Common phrases
create an epic · break down an epic · epic owner · link a story to an epic
More about this term →RICE
abbreviation
Meaning
A prioritization method that gives each idea a score based on Reach, Impact, Confidence and Effort, so that very different ideas can be compared.
Where you use it
Said as one word, like the food. The score is reach × impact × confidence ÷ effort. PMs often use it in spreadsheets during planning. It makes assumptions visible, but the numbers are still estimates, so the final ranking needs judgment.
Examples
Using RICE, the search improvements scored higher than the new dashboard.
Our confidence in the RICE scores is low because we have no data on reach yet.
Common phrases
RICE score · RICE framework · use RICE · score ideas with RICE
More about this term →MoSCoW method
noun
Meaning
A prioritization method that sorts requirements into four groups: Must have, Should have, Could have and Won't have (this time).
Where you use it
The two o's are added only to make the word readable; it has nothing to do with the city. Teams use it to agree on the scope of a release or an MVP. The Won't group is as useful as the Must group, because it makes exclusions explicit.
Examples
We used the MoSCoW method to cut the MVP down to six must-haves.
Thanks to the MoSCoW method, everyone could see that dark mode was only a could-have.
Common phrases
MoSCoW prioritization · must-have features · nice-to-have · won't-have list
More about this term →timeline
noun
Meaning
The planned order and dates of the main steps of a piece of work, from the start to the launch.
Where you use it
PMs share, agree on and update timelines, and sometimes a timeline slips. A realistic timeline includes time for testing, reviews and dependencies on other teams. When stakeholders ask “What's the timeline?”, they usually mean “When will it be ready?”
Examples
What's the timeline for the iPad version?
The timeline slipped by two weeks because the partner's API arrived late.
Common phrases
project timeline · tight timeline · realistic timeline · the timeline slipped · share a timeline
More about this term →validate
verb
Meaning
To check with evidence, such as user tests, data or experiments, that an idea, assumption or solution is actually right before investing more in it.
Where you use it
Very common in startups and discovery work: validate an idea, validate demand, validate the problem. The noun is validation. Be careful: talking to three friends who like your idea is not validation.
Examples
Before building the integration, let's validate that customers will actually pay for it.
We validated the problem in interviews, but we haven't validated the solution yet.
Common phrases
validate an idea · validate demand · validate assumptions · validate the problem · customer validation
More about this term →spec
noun
Meaning
Short for specification: a document that describes in detail how a feature should look and behave, so that designers and engineers can build it correctly.
Where you use it
Informal and very common: write a spec, the spec says, it's not in the spec, build to spec. In some companies a spec is the same as a PRD; in others the PRD explains the why and the technical spec, written by engineers, explains the how.
Examples
The spec doesn't mention what happens when the file is larger than 10 MB.
I'll update the spec with the new error messages after today's review.
Common phrases
write a spec · technical spec · update the spec · build to spec · spec review
More about this term →feature request
noun
Meaning
A suggestion from a customer, user or colleague asking for a new feature or for a change to an existing one.
Where you use it
Feature requests arrive through support, sales, reviews and community forums. PMs log, tag, group and respond to them, looking for the problem behind each request instead of building exactly what was asked.
Examples
Dark mode is our most common feature request, with over 400 votes.
Thanks for the feature request. Can you tell me what you're trying to do when you need it?
Common phrases
log a feature request · top feature request · feature request board · customer feature request
More about this term →definition of done
noun
Meaning
A shared checklist of quality conditions that every piece of work must meet before the team can call it done, such as tested, reviewed and documented.
Where you use it
A Scrum term, shortened to DoD. It applies to every story, while acceptance criteria are different for each story. Teams agree on, update and meet the definition of done; work that does not meet it goes back to the backlog.
Examples
Our definition of done includes updated help articles, not just working code.
It works on my laptop, but it doesn't meet the definition of done until it's tested on mobile.
Common phrases
meet the definition of done · agree on a definition of done · team definition of done · DoD checklist
More about this term →backlog refinement
noun
Meaning
Regular work in which the product owner and the team review upcoming backlog items, clarify them, split large ones and estimate them so they are ready for a sprint.
Where you use it
Often a weekly one-hour meeting. It used to be called backlog grooming; refinement is now the preferred word. A good refinement session ends with the top of the backlog ready, so sprint planning goes quickly.
Examples
Let's discuss the search stories in backlog refinement on Thursday.
We skipped backlog refinement last week, and sprint planning took three hours.
Common phrases
backlog refinement session · hold backlog refinement · refinement meeting · backlog grooming
More about this term →push back
phrasal verb
Meaning
To disagree with or resist a request, decision or deadline, usually politely and with reasons; also, to move a date to later.
Where you use it
Saying no is part of a PM's job, so push back on is heard daily: push back on a request, push back on scope. The noun is pushback: we got some pushback from sales. In the second meaning: the launch was pushed back to May.
Examples
I pushed back on the request because it would delay the security work.
The launch was pushed back by two weeks after the beta results.
Usage note
Pushing back a date makes it later. To make a date earlier, say bring forward or move up.
Common phrases
push back on a request · get pushback · push back on scope · push back the deadline
More about this term →cross-functional team
noun
Meaning
A team made up of people with different skills, such as product, design, engineering and data, who work together toward the same product goal.
Where you use it
The standard setup in modern product companies, sometimes called a squad or pod. The PM guides the team on what and why, the engineering lead on how. Working cross-functionally reduces handovers and waiting between departments.
Examples
Each cross-functional team owns one part of the customer journey, from sign-up to payment.
Our cross-functional team has a PM, a designer, five engineers and a data analyst.
Common phrases
work cross-functionally · cross-functional collaboration · lead a cross-functional team · cross-functional squad
More about this term →sign off
phrasal verb
Meaning
To give formal approval that a document, design or piece of work is acceptable, so that the next step can begin.
Where you use it
Used with on in American English (sign off on the design) and often without it in British English (sign off the design). The noun is sign-off: we need sign-off from legal. PMs collect sign-offs before launches and major releases.
Examples
Legal signed off on the new privacy text this morning.
We can't start development until the CFO signs off on the pricing.
Common phrases
sign off on · get sign-off · final sign-off · sign-off from legal
More about this term →status update
noun
Meaning
A short, regular report that tells stakeholders what has been done, what is coming next and what risks or blockers exist.
Where you use it
Sent weekly or every two weeks by email or Slack, or given in a meeting. Good PMs keep status updates short, lead with what changed and flag problems early. Common phrases: on track, at risk, blocked, slipped.
Examples
In this week's status update: search is on track, but payments is at risk.
Please send me a quick status update before the leadership meeting.
Common phrases
weekly status update · send a status update · give a status update · status update email
More about this term →go/no-go decision
noun
Meaning
A formal decision, usually made in a meeting shortly before launch, about whether a product or release is ready to go ahead or should be delayed.
Where you use it
Based on agreed criteria such as open critical bugs, test results, support readiness and sign-offs. People say we're a go, it's a no-go, or hold a go/no-go meeting. A no-go is not a failure if it prevents a bad launch.
Examples
We'll make the go/no-go decision on Thursday after the final test run.
The go/no-go decision was a no-go because the payment provider wasn't ready.
Common phrases
go/no-go meeting · make a go/no-go decision · go/no-go criteria · it's a no-go
More about this term →sunset
verb
Meaning
To gradually retire a product or feature and stop supporting it, usually after warning users and helping them move to an alternative.
Where you use it
A softer word than kill or remove, used in announcements and planning: we are sunsetting the desktop app. Also a noun: the sunset date. Retiring old features frees up time and reduces complexity, but it needs careful communication.
Examples
We're sunsetting the old reports page on June 30; all the data is available in the new dashboard.
Only 2% of users still open the legacy editor, so we decided to sunset it.
Common phrases
sunset a feature · sunset date · sunset plan · sunset the old version
More about this term →leading indicator
noun
Meaning
A metric that changes early and helps predict a future result, such as weekly logins predicting renewals, so a team can act before it is too late.
Where you use it
The opposite is a lagging indicator, such as revenue or yearly churn, which shows results only after they happen. PMs look for leading indicators because they give faster feedback on whether a change is working.
Examples
The number of projects created in the first week is a strong leading indicator of renewal.
Revenue won't move for months, so let's agree on a leading indicator we can watch now.
Common phrases
lagging indicator · strong leading indicator · track leading indicators · leading and lagging indicators
More about this term →guardrail metric
noun
Meaning
A metric a team watches during an experiment or launch to make sure the change does not harm something important, such as speed, revenue or complaints.
Where you use it
Teams define guardrail metrics together with the main success metric before an A/B test starts. If a guardrail metric gets worse beyond an agreed limit, the variant is stopped even if the main metric improves.
Examples
Page load time is a guardrail metric for every checkout experiment.
Clicks went up, but the unsubscribe rate, our guardrail metric, doubled.
Common phrases
set guardrail metrics · breach a guardrail · guardrail metric threshold · success metric
More about this term →triage
verb
Meaning
To review incoming bugs, requests or issues quickly and sort them by urgency and importance, deciding which to handle now, later or not at all.
Where you use it
Borrowed from hospital emergency rooms. Product teams triage bugs, feature requests and support escalations, often in a regular triage meeting. Also a noun: the bug went through triage. Severity and priority are the usual labels.
Examples
We triage new bugs every morning, and only the critical ones go into the current sprint.
Can you help me triage this week's feature requests from sales?
Common phrases
bug triage · triage meeting · triage incoming requests · triage process
More about this term →dogfooding
noun
Meaning
The practice of a company using its own product internally, often before release, to find problems and understand the user experience firsthand.
Where you use it
Comes from the phrase eating your own dog food. Common in software companies: we're dogfooding the new version, a dogfooding period. It finds many bugs, but employees are not typical users, so it does not replace testing with real customers.
Examples
We've been dogfooding the new calendar for two weeks, and it has already caught three serious bugs.
Dogfooding showed us how annoying the daily notification really is.
Common phrases
dogfooding period · internal dogfooding · dogfood a feature · eat your own dog food
More about this term →APIs, Networking and Security
API
abbreviation
Meaning
Short for application programming interface: a set of rules that lets one program ask another program for data or actions in a fixed, documented way.
Where you use it
Everywhere in modern software. You call, use, design, document and version an API. People talk about a 'public API', an 'internal API', a 'REST API' and an 'API key'.
Examples
The mobile app gets all its data from our API.
Their API has a limit of 100 requests per minute.
We need to design the API before the frontend team can start.
Usage note
Say the letters one by one: A-P-I (ay-pee-eye). Reading it as one word, the Turkish way, sounds wrong in English.
Common phrases
call an API · public API · API key · API documentation · design an API
More about this term →endpoint
noun
Meaning
A specific URL of an API that accepts requests for one kind of action, such as GET /users to list users or POST /orders to create an order.
Where you use it
Backend developers add, expose, call, secure and deprecate endpoints. You will hear 'the login endpoint', 'a new endpoint for reports' and 'This endpoint is slow.'
Examples
I added a new endpoint that returns the user's last ten orders.
The search endpoint takes four seconds under load.
Common phrases
call an endpoint · add an endpoint · API endpoint · expose an endpoint · deprecated endpoint
More about this term →REST
abbreviation
Meaning
Short for representational state transfer: a common style for web APIs in which resources have URLs and are handled with HTTP methods such as GET, POST, PUT and DELETE.
Where you use it
People say 'REST API', 'RESTful service' and 'REST endpoint'. Discussions often compare REST with GraphQL or gRPC, or argue about whether an API is 'really' RESTful.
Examples
The mobile team prefers a REST API because their tools support it well.
In a RESTful design, you'd use DELETE /orders/42 instead of POST /deleteOrder.
Usage note
Pronounced as a word, like 'rest' (to relax), not letter by letter.
Common phrases
REST API · RESTful service · REST endpoint · REST principles
More about this term →JSON
abbreviation
Meaning
Short for JavaScript Object Notation: a simple text format for data, made of key-value pairs and lists, used by most web APIs.
Where you use it
APIs send and receive JSON; you parse, validate and serialize it. Typical phrases are 'JSON response', 'JSON body', 'invalid JSON' and 'JSON file'.
Examples
The endpoint returns JSON with the user's name, email and plan.
The request failed because of a missing comma in the JSON.
Usage note
Usually pronounced like the name 'Jason' (JAY-sun), not letter by letter.
Common phrases
JSON response · parse JSON · invalid JSON · JSON file · JSON body
More about this term →status code
noun
Meaning
A three-digit number in an HTTP response that tells the client what happened, such as 200 for success, 404 for not found or 500 for a server error.
Where you use it
Developers read and return status codes and often say just the number: 'I'm getting a 401', 'It returns a 500.' Codes in the 4xx range mean a problem with the request; 5xx codes mean a problem on the server.
Examples
The endpoint should return status code 201 when the order is created.
Check the status code first; the body is empty when it's a 204.
Usage note
Codes are usually read digit by digit: 404 is 'four-oh-four' and 401 is 'four-oh-one', while 500 is often just 'five hundred'.
Common phrases
return a status code · HTTP status code · error status code · check the status code
More about this term →payload
noun
Meaning
The actual data carried by a request, response or message, as opposed to the headers and other information around it.
Where you use it
Used when talking about what is sent: 'the request payload', 'the webhook payload', 'The payload is too large.' Teams check payload size, format and validation.
Examples
The payload includes the order ID, the amount and the currency.
The upload fails because the payload is larger than 10 MB.
Common phrases
request payload · response payload · payload size · JSON payload
More about this term →authentication
noun
Meaning
The process of checking who a user or system is, for example with a password, a token or a fingerprint, before giving access.
Where you use it
Often shortened to 'auth'. APIs require authentication, usually with API keys or tokens such as OAuth access tokens or JWTs. People talk about 'two-factor authentication' and say 'Authentication failed.'
Examples
All endpoints except the health check need authentication.
Users get a 401 because the authentication token has expired.
Usage note
Authentication checks who you are; authorization checks what you are allowed to do. 'Auth' can mean either, so be specific in tickets.
Common phrases
require authentication · two-factor authentication · authentication token · authentication failed
More about this term →third-party
adjective
Meaning
Made or provided by an outside company or developer, not by your own team, such as a payment service, library or analytics tool.
Where you use it
Used before nouns: 'third-party library', 'third-party API', 'third-party integration'. Teams discuss the risks of depending on third-party services, such as outages, price changes and data privacy.
Examples
We use a third-party service to send SMS codes.
The outage wasn't our fault; a third-party API was down for an hour.
Usage note
Hyphenated before a noun ('a third-party tool'), but written as two words when used as a noun ('data shared with a third party').
Common phrases
third-party library · third-party API · third-party service · third-party integration
More about this term →SDK
abbreviation
Meaning
Short for software development kit: a package of libraries, tools and documentation that helps developers build on a platform or use a service.
Where you use it
Companies publish SDKs for their APIs in several languages, and platforms such as Android and iOS have their own SDKs. You install, integrate and upgrade an SDK.
Examples
Instead of calling their API directly, we use their official Python SDK.
The analytics SDK added 3 MB to the app size.
Common phrases
install an SDK · official SDK · mobile SDK · upgrade the SDK · integrate an SDK
More about this term →breaking change
noun
Meaning
A change to an API, library or file format that makes existing code that uses it stop working unless that code is updated too.
Where you use it
Release notes often have a 'Breaking changes' section. In semantic versioning, a breaking change means a new major version, for example from 2.x to 3.0. Teams try to announce breaking changes early and avoid them where possible.
Examples
Renaming that field is a breaking change for every mobile client still on the old version.
Version 5 of the library has several breaking changes, so the upgrade will take time.
Usage note
The opposite idea is 'backward compatible': a change that does not break existing users.
Common phrases
introduce a breaking change · avoid breaking changes · breaking changes in · list of breaking changes
More about this term →