Summary
The vocabulary glossary at bitcoin.org/en/vocabulary is one of the most-visited pages on the site for newcomers. After auditing every entry against current network state and protocol changes since the page was originally written, four definitions contain factually outdated information and the page is missing several foundational terms central to using Bitcoin in 2026.
This issue documents the findings; a corresponding pull request will follow with the proposed changes to _translations/en.yml and _templates/vocabulary.html.
A. Outdated content in existing definitions
| Term |
Issue |
| Hash Rate |
Cites "10 Th/s" as an example. The network reached this scale around 2011. As of April 2026, the global hash rate is approximately 935 EH/s — roughly 93.5 million times larger. |
| Private Key |
Lists only "software wallet" (computer) and "web wallet" (remote servers) as storage options. Hardware wallets (mainstream since ~2014) and recovery phrases (BIP-39, 2013) are not mentioned. |
| Address |
States "each address should only be used for a single transaction." This is technically inaccurate — an address can receive multiple payments without any protocol issue. The actual recommendation is a privacy best practice for receiving funds, already worded correctly on /en/protect-your-privacy. |
| Confirmation |
Cites "$1000 USD" as the threshold suggesting 6 confirmations. Written when 1 BTC was worth less than $1,000; in April 2026, 1 BTC ≈ $69,000 USD. The 6-confirmations heuristic remains valid; only the dated USD example is outdated. |
B. Missing core terms
The current glossary includes 15 entries. The following concepts are widely used in Bitcoin discussion and would be expected in any introductory glossary today:
- Satoshi — the smallest unit (1 BTC = 100,000,000 satoshis).
- Node — full nodes are central to Bitcoin's trust-minimization model; the "Running A Full Node" page already exists on the site.
- Recovery Phrase — standardized via BIP-39 (2013) and used by virtually every modern wallet.
- UTXO — the accounting model used by the Bitcoin protocol since the genesis block.
- Transaction Fee — fundamental to how transactions are prioritized and how miners are compensated.
- Halving — the scheduled subsidy reduction every 210,000 blocks; central to Bitcoin's monetary policy.
- SegWit — protocol upgrade activated in 2017; already referenced on the wallet wizard page (
wizard-feature-segwit) but not defined in the glossary.
- Taproot — protocol upgrade activated in 2021.
- Lightning Network — already referenced on the wallet wizard page (
wizard-feature-lightning) but not defined in the glossary.
Proposed approach
A single pull request with all changes is proposed because they are coherent and interlinked (e.g., miningtxt will reference the new halving term once it exists). Per docs/assisting-with-translations.md, only en.yml will be modified; translations to the other 30 languages are handled via Transifex.
The proposed wording follows the tone and length of existing glossary entries: short, neutral, descriptive. New definitions describe what is widely accepted in 2026 without promoting any specific implementation, vendor, or position.
Summary
The vocabulary glossary at
bitcoin.org/en/vocabularyis one of the most-visited pages on the site for newcomers. After auditing every entry against current network state and protocol changes since the page was originally written, four definitions contain factually outdated information and the page is missing several foundational terms central to using Bitcoin in 2026.This issue documents the findings; a corresponding pull request will follow with the proposed changes to
_translations/en.ymland_templates/vocabulary.html.A. Outdated content in existing definitions
/en/protect-your-privacy.B. Missing core terms
The current glossary includes 15 entries. The following concepts are widely used in Bitcoin discussion and would be expected in any introductory glossary today:
wizard-feature-segwit) but not defined in the glossary.wizard-feature-lightning) but not defined in the glossary.Proposed approach
A single pull request with all changes is proposed because they are coherent and interlinked (e.g.,
miningtxtwill reference the newhalvingterm once it exists). Perdocs/assisting-with-translations.md, onlyen.ymlwill be modified; translations to the other 30 languages are handled via Transifex.The proposed wording follows the tone and length of existing glossary entries: short, neutral, descriptive. New definitions describe what is widely accepted in 2026 without promoting any specific implementation, vendor, or position.