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The Domaining Dictionary

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Bannen

Don't say Huh? too much; pretend you understand.Top Member
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I've been thinking of starting this thread for awhile, so here it is.
Many newbies and pros alike still daily ask about certain terms, so I wanted to create this resource thread to link to anytime anyone asks what a domaining term means.

I'll add definitions as they arise, other members are welcome to write clear, well-written definitions here also, and anyone is welcome to post a question about a term and we will try to write a clear definition for you. *If I get any details wrong here, or something's unclear, feel free to let me know.

Here are a few of the most common terms still asked about, to get us started:

BIN - in sales threads you'll see 'BIN price' or 'buy at BIN'. BIN stands for 'Buy It Now' and is considered the instant selling price if you want to bypass making lesser offers or bidding up in an auction for a domain. Many auctions or 'make offer' sales do not set a BIN, just in case bids/offers rise higher than that BIN amount, but most domainers have a good idea of the top price they want for a domain and will set a BIN price just in case they luck out and a buyer wants the domain enough to buy at BIN and not risk losing it to anyone else.

End User - you often hear of domainers selling domains to 'end users'. This term refers to a buyer who plans to use a domain for considerable development. A corporation or person who has a large vested interest in that website, for business or extensive personal use, does not plan to trade or resell that domain name (unless an irresistable offer arises) so they are considered the 'end of the line' for that domain, the user who has the final use of it and will likely never sell it again. Basically a domain is traded from owner to owner until it finds the ideal end user who will keep it indefinitely. Since the end user has so much interest in the name, they also usually pay much more for that domain than will a reseller who intends to profit on the name by reselling it at a higher price.

Grace Delete - grace deletion refers to the process of deleting a domain name shortly after you registered it. There are many reasons people register domains and then delete them within a few days; commonly it is simply a matter of 'sobering up', ha ha, and realizing it's not as good a domain as you thought yesterday. Other reasons range from discovering the name is based on a trademark, to tasting the domain for traffic and then letting it go.
Grace deletion is not a service offered by all registrars, you don't have a 'right' to delete a domain and get a refund, it's a service volunteered by some registrars. The ones that offer this allow you a 'grace period' - usually a handful of days after registration date but this varies - for you to delete a domain. Some registrars offer an automated system so you can perform the grace delete yourself, while with other registrars you must send their support a request to delete your domain/s.
Note that any registrar can delete your domain (certain extensions anyway, like dot.com) when you ask them to, any time, but the 'grace delete' term refers to you actually getting some or most of your registration fee back, when deleting your domain within a specified (short) amount of time after registering it. Registrars who offer the grace delete service will set their own grace period, their own rate for this service (usually a small percentage of your reg fee), and determine their own process. Grace delete is just a short term for 'register a domain, delete it again within a short time, and get a partial refund back'.

LLL, LLLL, CVCV, CCC, etc etc. - these are domainer-speak, or slang or code or jargon, for certain types of domain name configurations. Please see Post #6 below for full explanation.

Parking - domain parking is a quick, non-development system of pointing your domain name to a simple landing page or pages that offer an automated template website, usually containing some paid advertising links and/or very simplified content, both of these automated. For more description see Post #7 below.

Push - a 'push' is a kind of domain transfer, but is different technically from the word 'transfer' (see definition for 'transfer' below). A push is when you transfer a domain name WITHIN THE SAME REGISTRAR, but to a different user. For example, if your domain is at the registrar Godaddy, you can push it to a different user who also has an account at Godaddy. Each registrar has their own procedure and requirements for a push, but most registrars follow the same basic structure:
A push can be done anytime, even immediately after regging the name; a push is immediate, taking a few seconds to a few minutes until it is in the new user's account; a push is usually free and does not require the new user to renew the name for another year, rather the same expiration date is kept; a push is simple, usually requiring you to know only the new user's username at your registrar, or their username and email, etc.
A push also differs with a transfer in that a push is originated from the CURRENT owner's account, whereas a transfer is initiated from the NEW owner's account. To initiate a push, you select the domain you want to push, then you look around for something that says 'push domain' or 'initiate account change' or something like that, and follow instructions. The new owner must follow their own procedure to accept the push into their account.

Reg Fee - this is an abbreviation of 'registration fee', the cost of registering a domain name. Each registrar has different prices for dot.com's and other TLD's and ccTLD'S, and most good registrars also offer discount e-coupons for different TLD's, fresh regs, renewals, etc. 'Reg Fee' is most commonly seen in the appraisals section, where a name is valued at 'reg fee'. Most reg fees for dot.com's are in the $7 - $12 range.

Reseller - just that: a domainer who trades in domains. Resellers buy domains and do not develop them (unless it is with parking, minisites or minimal development for the purpose of making temporary income from the domain, or increasing its traffic/value for resale). As with any reseller, domainers ideally try to buy very low and sell very high. In a perfect world a reseller will reg a domain or buy it at a cheap reseller price, find the perfect end user for it, and sell high to that end user.

TLD, ccTLD - Top Level Domains; please see Post #4 below for description.

Transfer - a 'transfer' is differentiated from a 'push' (see definition for 'push' above). A transfer is when a domain name is transferred from one registrar TO A DIFFERENT REGISTRAR. The domain can be transferred to your account in the new registrar, or to a different person's account in a new registrar.
Transfer procedures differ for different extensions and different registrars, but they follow some basic structures: a transfer is initiated by the NEW registrant's account, rather than by the CURRENT owner; but the current owner must supply the new owner with what is called an 'EPP code', which you will have to locate or create for the domain being transferred (creating/finding the EPP code varies according to different registrars, but it is necessary to every transfer of a dot.com and many extensions); the domain must also be 'unlocked', if it is locked, by the current registrant; a transfer is not instant like a push, it can take a few days to a few weeks to complete, or longer depending on the quality/efficiency of one or both registrars involved); a push is usually free, while for a transfer you must pay the reg fee at the new registrar, which gives you a year's reg time starting at the transfer date, losing any time still left on the reg at the previous registrar; also, whereas a push can be performed anytime, even immediately after buying or regging a name, a transfer usually has time restrictions - again, this varies by registrar and extension, but whenever you register or buy a dot.com there is usually a 60-day waiting period before you can transfer that domain again to another registrar. I will try write a clear outline of that 60-day waiting period for this dictionary, soon.

x
xx
xxx
x,xxx
etc. - 'x's are used mainly in the appraisals section, to denote rough estimates of how much a domain is worth. Valuing a domain name is a vague process and prices differ wildly according to the domain, the economy, the end users' pockets, and other factors, so exact valuations cannot be given. So domainers use approximations that may include numbers or x's.
The x's are simply substitutes for tens, hundreds, thousands, etc. For example, we may say a domain is worth $300 - 600... or we may put it another way and say it is worth mid-xxx.
We may say it is worth $50 - 100, or mid to high xx. We might say it is worth $8, or high x.
Here is a general outlay:
x = 0 to 9, since it is a single digit.
Low x = 0 - 3; mid x = 4 - 6; high x = 7 - 9.

xx = 10 - 99, since it covers all double-digit numbers.
Low xx = 10 - 30; mid xx = 40 - 60; high xx = 70 - 99.

xxx = 100 - 999, since it covers all three-digit numbers.
Low xxx = 100 - 300, mid xxx = 400 - 600; high xxx = 700 - 999.

This breakdown continues through x,xxx and xx,xxx and xxx,xxx and x,xxx,xxx etc, referring to thousands, tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands, millions.
All these are vague approximate ranges.

More definitions to come! Let me/us know if there are any domaining words you want defined.
:)
 
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The views expressed on this page by users and staff are their own, not those of NamePros.
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What is CBD?
Pretty sure, it not domain related but medical marijuana related...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cannabidiol

What is IDN ?
Short form for Internationalized domain names
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internationalized_domain_name

For example , check out this part of the forum, https://www.namepros.com/forums/idn-and-emoji-domain-discussion.113/

What is the exact meaning of " .... he left money on the table" !

Thanks .
Personally, I understand the term, "left money on the table" to mean, the the seller didn't get too greedy when selling his/her domain!

Personally it is not a bad thing because a deal was made (usually after a long negotiation), the seller sold a domain, the buy (end user) acquired the name he/she wanted.

The "table" part comes from the poker world: when you don't play smart, you're leaving your money on the poker table. (a negative use)
 
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Can also stand for Central Business District

I’ve sold CBDlondon.com in the past
 
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I believe you would call it a glossery of terms but would think the examples so far are just the basics.
 
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I believe you would call it a glossery of terms but would think the examples so far are just the basics.
Basics are great way to explain thing to beginners (lurkers)..
 
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Hi all, what does DBA stand for in regard to the name of a registrar? Thanks
 
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Hello,

Thanks for this good explanation in above,
as I would like to ask about the term of: "back order"
it sound like someone lost his/her domain after expired, and then order it again or something like that?
anyway, I hop you can explain this, Thanks.
 
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Hi all, what does DBA stand for in regard to the name of a registrar? Thanks

DBA stands for Doing Business As.

eg Mr Domains, DBA, Very Important Domains. As in they are not trading under their own name, but doing business under some other name. It's a legal term.
 
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Hi all, what does DBA stand for in regard to the name of a registrar? Thanks

DBA? never heard it particularly related with domaining...in general DBA either means database administration or Doctor of business adminstration, or sometime means "doing business as" ....
 
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re-purposed ccTLD - a country-code extension that although allocated and represents its corresponding country, has become globally available for registration, and marketed and used as a generic meaning rather than the country.

some examples:

.io - re-purposed for popular for tech companies (input/output). Originally British Indian Ocean Territory.
.me - re-purposed for me (me me me). Originally Montenegro.
.co - re-purposed as an alt for .com, or "company". Originally Colombia.
.tv - re-purposed for television. Originally Tuvalu.
.ai - re-purposed for artificial intelligence. Originally Anguilla.
.ws - re-purposed for "website". Originally Western Samoa.
 
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re-purposed ccTLD - a country-code extension that although allocated and represents its corresponding country, has become globally available for registration, and marketed and used as a generic meaning rather than the country.

some examples:

.io - re-purposed for popular for tech companies (input/output). Originally British Indian Ocean Territory.
.me - re-purposed for me (me me me). Originally Montenegro.
.co - re-purposed as an alt for .com, or "company". Originally Colombia.
.tv - re-purposed for television. Originally Tuvalu.
.ai - re-purposed for artificial intelligence. Originally Anguilla.
.ws - re-purposed for "website". Originally Western Samoa.

Which of these has been most successful at this? And how do you see this changing in the future?
 
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Which of these has been most successful at this? And how do you see this changing in the future?
I don't know Stub. Good question. But I have sold .ai's and .ws's, and have dabbled in .tv's. Out of the list, IMO good names in .ai and .tv are worth a look at in regards to gaining momentum.

I really, really have always liked .ai, though. Which is weird, because I hate the idea of ai. Unless its in a good book. Wish I owned more than the only one I have left.
 
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re-purposed ccTLD - a country-code extension that although allocated and represents its corresponding country, has become globally available for registration, and marketed and used as a generic meaning rather than the country.

some examples:

.io - re-purposed for popular for tech companies (input/output). Originally British Indian Ocean Territory.
.me - re-purposed for me (me me me). Originally Montenegro.
.co - re-purposed as an alt for .com, or "company". Originally Colombia.
.tv - re-purposed for television. Originally Tuvalu.
.ai - re-purposed for artificial intelligence. Originally Anguilla.
.ws - re-purposed for "website". Originally Western Samoa.

Which of these has been most successful at this? And how do you see this changing in the future?

From those .TV, .IO and .ME are the most successful ones. These TLD's are global available, I don't see any changes in the future.
 
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Very informative thread for a beginner. Thanks a ton for all of them who contributed to this thread. :xf.love:
 
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From those .TV, .IO and .ME are the most successful ones. These TLD's are global available, I don't see any changes in the future.

I'm surprized you don't include .CO in your short list. Was that intentional, or an oversight?
 
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I've been thinking of starting this thread for awhile, so here it is.
Many newbies and pros alike still daily ask about certain terms, so I wanted to create this resource thread to link to anytime anyone asks what a domaining term means.

I'll add definitions as they arise, other members are welcome to write clear, well-written definitions here also, and anyone is welcome to post a question about a term and we will try to write a clear definition for you. *If I get any details wrong here, or something's unclear, feel free to let me know.

Here are a few of the most common terms still asked about, to get us started:

BIN - in sales threads you'll see 'BIN price' or 'buy at BIN'. BIN stands for 'Buy It Now' and is considered the instant selling price if you want to bypass making lesser offers or bidding up in an auction for a domain. Many auctions or 'make offer' sales do not set a BIN, just in case bids/offers rise higher than that BIN amount, but most domainers have a good idea of the top price they want for a domain and will set a BIN price just in case they luck out and a buyer wants the domain enough to buy at BIN and not risk losing it to anyone else.

End User - you often hear of domainers selling domains to 'end users'. This term refers to a buyer who plans to use a domain for considerable development. A corporation or person who has a large vested interest in that website, for business or extensive personal use, does not plan to trade or resell that domain name (unless an irresistable offer arises) so they are considered the 'end of the line' for that domain, the user who has the final use of it and will likely never sell it again. Basically a domain is traded from owner to owner until it finds the ideal end user who will keep it indefinitely. Since the end user has so much interest in the name, they also usually pay much more for that domain than will a reseller who intends to profit on the name by reselling it at a higher price.

Grace Delete - grace deletion refers to the process of deleting a domain name shortly after you registered it. There are many reasons people register domains and then delete them within a few days; commonly it is simply a matter of 'sobering up', ha ha, and realizing it's not as good a domain as you thought yesterday. Other reasons range from discovering the name is based on a trademark, to tasting the domain for traffic and then letting it go.
Grace deletion is not a service offered by all registrars, you don't have a 'right' to delete a domain and get a refund, it's a service volunteered by some registrars. The ones that offer this allow you a 'grace period' - usually a handful of days after registration date but this varies - for you to delete a domain. Some registrars offer an automated system so you can perform the grace delete yourself, while with other registrars you must send their support a request to delete your domain/s.
Note that any registrar can delete your domain (certain extensions anyway, like dot.com) when you ask them to, any time, but the 'grace delete' term refers to you actually getting some or most of your registration fee back, when deleting your domain within a specified (short) amount of time after registering it. Registrars who offer the grace delete service will set their own grace period, their own rate for this service (usually a small percentage of your reg fee), and determine their own process. Grace delete is just a short term for 'register a domain, delete it again within a short time, and get a partial refund back'.

LLL, LLLL, CVCV, CCC, etc etc. - these are domainer-speak, or slang or code or jargon, for certain types of domain name configurations. Please see Post #6 below for full explanation.

Parking - domain parking is a quick, non-development system of pointing your domain name to a simple landing page or pages that offer an automated template website, usually containing some paid advertising links and/or very simplified content, both of these automated. For more description see Post #7 below.

Push - a 'push' is a kind of domain transfer, but is different technically from the word 'transfer' (see definition for 'transfer' below). A push is when you transfer a domain name WITHIN THE SAME REGISTRAR, but to a different user. For example, if your domain is at the registrar Godaddy, you can push it to a different user who also has an account at Godaddy. Each registrar has their own procedure and requirements for a push, but most registrars follow the same basic structure:
A push can be done anytime, even immediately after regging the name; a push is immediate, taking a few seconds to a few minutes until it is in the new user's account; a push is usually free and does not require the new user to renew the name for another year, rather the same expiration date is kept; a push is simple, usually requiring you to know only the new user's username at your registrar, or their username and email, etc.
A push also differs with a transfer in that a push is originated from the CURRENT owner's account, whereas a transfer is initiated from the NEW owner's account. To initiate a push, you select the domain you want to push, then you look around for something that says 'push domain' or 'initiate account change' or something like that, and follow instructions. The new owner must follow their own procedure to accept the push into their account.

Reg Fee - this is an abbreviation of 'registration fee', the cost of registering a domain name. Each registrar has different prices for dot.com's and other TLD's and ccTLD'S, and most good registrars also offer discount e-coupons for different TLD's, fresh regs, renewals, etc. 'Reg Fee' is most commonly seen in the appraisals section, where a name is valued at 'reg fee'. Most reg fees for dot.com's are in the $7 - $12 range.

Reseller - just that: a domainer who trades in domains. Resellers buy domains and do not develop them (unless it is with parking, minisites or minimal development for the purpose of making temporary income from the domain, or increasing its traffic/value for resale). As with any reseller, domainers ideally try to buy very low and sell very high. In a perfect world a reseller will reg a domain or buy it at a cheap reseller price, find the perfect end user for it, and sell high to that end user.

TLD, ccTLD - Top Level Domains; please see Post #4 below for description.

Transfer - a 'transfer' is differentiated from a 'push' (see definition for 'push' above). A transfer is when a domain name is transferred from one registrar TO A DIFFERENT REGISTRAR. The domain can be transferred to your account in the new registrar, or to a different person's account in a new registrar.
Transfer procedures differ for different extensions and different registrars, but they follow some basic structures: a transfer is initiated by the NEW registrant's account, rather than by the CURRENT owner; but the current owner must supply the new owner with what is called an 'EPP code', which you will have to locate or create for the domain being transferred (creating/finding the EPP code varies according to different registrars, but it is necessary to every transfer of a dot.com and many extensions); the domain must also be 'unlocked', if it is locked, by the current registrant; a transfer is not instant like a push, it can take a few days to a few weeks to complete, or longer depending on the quality/efficiency of one or both registrars involved); a push is usually free, while for a transfer you must pay the reg fee at the new registrar, which gives you a year's reg time starting at the transfer date, losing any time still left on the reg at the previous registrar; also, whereas a push can be performed anytime, even immediately after buying or regging a name, a transfer usually has time restrictions - again, this varies by registrar and extension, but whenever you register or buy a dot.com there is usually a 60-day waiting period before you can transfer that domain again to another registrar. I will try write a clear outline of that 60-day waiting period for this dictionary, soon.

x
xx
xxx
x,xxx
etc. - 'x's are used mainly in the appraisals section, to denote rough estimates of how much a domain is worth. Valuing a domain name is a vague process and prices differ wildly according to the domain, the economy, the end users' pockets, and other factors, so exact valuations cannot be given. So domainers use approximations that may include numbers or x's.
The x's are simply substitutes for tens, hundreds, thousands, etc. For example, we may say a domain is worth $300 - 600... or we may put it another way and say it is worth mid-xxx.
We may say it is worth $50 - 100, or mid to high xx. We might say it is worth $8, or high x.
Here is a general outlay:
x = 0 to 9, since it is a single digit.
Low x = 0 - 3; mid x = 4 - 6; high x = 7 - 9.

xx = 10 - 99, since it covers all double-digit numbers.
Low xx = 10 - 30; mid xx = 40 - 60; high xx = 70 - 99.

xxx = 100 - 999, since it covers all three-digit numbers.
Low xxx = 100 - 300, mid xxx = 400 - 600; high xxx = 700 - 999.

This breakdown continues through x,xxx and xx,xxx and xxx,xxx and x,xxx,xxx etc, referring to thousands, tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands, millions.
All these are vague approximate ranges.

More definitions to come! Let me/us know if there are any domaining words you want defined.
:)
Great job! I’ve been calling for this ever since l took on domaining about 9 months ago. I teach English and know the language inside-out—but, sadly for me, l’m a tech-illiterate.

A major problem from the start has been trying to figure out the domaining terms that riddle the “Requrst Domains” Discussion. Half the time, l’m absolutely clueless to what the “Requestor” wants.

I would happily buy a publication like this—just an idea for you.

A post above yours asks for the meaning of Aftermarket, and l replied, saying l wish l knew. And it was almost karma that l scrolled down to your post.

Now l know what push and 4L mean—and those are just for starters! What about Domain Authority?

Keep on keepin’ on, Good Guy!
 
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DBA stands for Doing Business As.

And in many cases a "Sole Proprietor" business, but some corporations play games with this too. Banks require a legitimate Persons name in order to open a bank account under a DBA to receive checks in the Company name or your personal name. Some corporations attempting to obfuscate ownership under a DBA, I have even seen some that are daisy chained, not sure of the legality.
Corp A dba Corp B dba Corp C.
 
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I've added a bunch of definitions to TheDomainDictionary.com in the last day or so. I'll be adding anchors so people can link directly to a definition.

It's still a work in progress, and any suggestions are appreciated.
"established member"
 
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perhaps 'buy it now' should be renamed 'buy the rights now'
I hear your understanding of what it really being bought (rights during next renewal period). Thank you.
 
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Bump isn't a domaining term, it's a forum term. It means if no one's answered your last post for hours or days, then your post/thread will drop down and down in the list and eventually it's days or weeks of pages back and no one sees it; so you enter another post yourself to 'bump' your thread to the top of the forum or category.

Since you're not posting a comment and all you are doing is bumping your thread so it's current again, most people just say 'bump', instead of saying something like 'anyone going to answer me?' or 'come on, somebody say something!'

Thanks for bumping my thread :)
I REALLY needed to hear what you wrote.... Thank you!!!
 
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Not quite a definition but this is the link for the 242 pages of "premium" domain names that the .MOBI registry reserved in 2007 for auction. As a document, it shows the kind of domain names which are generic (generally) and potentially valuable. The links to the documents are in Microsoft Excel and PDF format.

https://web.archive.org/web/20071231212656/http://mtld.mobi/domain/premium

Regards...jmcc
 
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why would someone buy 1964.com or 7592.com

As i have listen from some people, that before registering a domain, alwys think why someone buy it, can it be used by startups, organisation, or company, for naming it as a brand or not,
it must be easy to remember, must be small. Bcse when i see the marketplace, there people are selling sh*tty domains also, why would somone buy those, which has no meaning in it,

some other says, put urself in the shoes of the customers, and think would u buy this 4523.com or 15152.com. so according to me i will never by this if i am a customer, i know every customer is differnt, they have differnet needs, but still ?????

this think makes me confuse, :banghead:, like as i can type anything 3L or 4L on registrar search bar, so it is a good idea to register any 3L or 4L or 5N.com

how i can figure that out, that it is useful or not, for someone, or company for making this name as a brand.

i hope u got my point.
Waiting for ur reply

Thx
oomeysh

@Umesh1 Good Question actually these 4523.com (NNNN) and 15152 (NNNNN) names do not most of the time go to end users but are bought buy Domainers to sell it to other domainers for some profit for Liquidity at the time of their need.So hence they are mostly called as Liquid Domains.

Some domains like 8888.com (NNNN) and 555.com (NNN) such same repeated number domains may some time sell to mostly Chinese Companies for very high prices as they have some good luck associated with repeated same number pattern as such above.

Experienced Domainers correct me here if I am wrong.
 
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Thanks @Bannen for this wonderful service stuff of yours with the basic stuffs of Domaining and all others who contributed to help the fellow Domainers and the Namepros Community learn and grow together through this awesome thread.
 
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Thankyou for this great post!

Really helpful for beginners
 
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Premium domain name - a registered name that is being re-sold either by an individual or company, or a brand-new, unused domain name that is being sold for a higher price than a regular registration fee in that particular extension.

There is a lot of confusion over the word "premium" used when describing domain names for sale. Essentially, every domain name that is selling for anything other than reg fee is fetching a premium price, thus a premium domain (selling for a premium).

At first glance, when we see something described as "premium" it tends to convey "quality". But unfortunately, the word premium has been overused so much with DNs that the fact is, a premium domain name has nothing to do with quality and everything to do with price.

For those interested in describing an exceptional domain name for sale, you may try combining the two terms, "premium quality", or just excluding the the word premium and going the route of "high-quality" or similar wording.
 
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