A dictionary of insider language
Every trade has a second language.
Plain-English meanings for 3,521 terms from 33 specialist fields, from the formal words in the spec to the shop talk you only hear on the job.
TryWipe Coating Step voltage Top-hat Filtration
- 3,521defined terms
- 33specialist fields
- 1,046shop-talk expressions
- 225words with double lives
Lingo spotlight · Tribology & Lubrication
Standard term
Pre-blended mix of performance chemicals that a blender adds to base oil to make a finished lubricant.
Zinc and phos dropped to nothing on this sample, that's not the additive package we've been buying.
Overheard on the job
Station twelve is passing rehits, so pull the rundown curves and see if we're hiding cross-threads.
TranslationThe assembly tool is approving fasteners that were already tight, so check the recorded tightening data for signs that some screws were started crooked.
Fasteners & ThreadsWalk the beam through both irises, then peak up the fiber launch on the power meter.
TranslationAlign the beam with two steering mirrors against two aperture targets, then fine-tune for maximum power coupled into the fiber.
Photonics & LasersBlow a jet line through with the mouse, then pull in the mule tape and set up the tugger.
TranslationUse a vacuum or blower to send a light pull string through the empty conduit, use it to pull in flat pulling tape, then rig the powered cable puller for the main pull.
Electricians' Slang
The periodic table of insider lingo
All 33 fieldsEach field gets a symbol, like an element. Pick one to open its glossary, its phrasebook and the words that give outsiders away.
Materials & Surfaces
Making & Joining
Power & Climate
Light & Electronics
Built Environment
Shop talk
All 1,046 expressionsThe words that never make it into the manual: nicknames, clipped forms and crew slang, explained.
Spiraling
Twisting of brick rings out of radial alignment inside a rotary kiln when the lining works loose.
Megger
To test insulation resistance with a high-voltage DC tester; also the jobsite name for the tester itself.
Schmoo
Shop slang for grease, grime, sludge or any gooey lubricant, whether doing its job or gumming things up.
Unmelts
Lab shorthand for particles that hit the surface without fully melting and kept their round shape.
Ghost light
A single bare lamp on a stand left burning center stage whenever a theater is dark and empty.
Kneeboards
Flat boards finishers kneel on to spread their weight while working a fresh slab by hand.
Pull
To take a load or part out of the furnace, usually on its way to the quench or at the end of a cycle.
YAG
Shorthand for yttrium aluminum garnet, and in practice for the Nd:YAG laser at 1064 nm.
Jeep
Pipeline slang for the high-voltage holiday detector, and also for the coating flaws it finds.
Inspect before you connect
The fiber tech's rule that every connector end face gets scoped, and cleaned if needed, before it is mated.
NIST traceable
A common label phrase claiming a measurement links back to US national standards, often used loosely.
Dirt leg
A capped vertical stub of pipe below the gas inlet tee that traps scale, dirt and liquid before they reach the gas valve.
Same word, different worlds
See all 225Ordinary words that mean something completely different depending on who is talking.
Bump
6 fields, 6 meanings
- Machine Shop: To make a small adjustment to an offset or position, usually a thou or less, to bring a...
- Electrotechnology: To energise a motor for a split second to check its direction of rotation before running...
- Boilers: To energize a motor, pump or burner for a second or two to check rotation or operation.
Spalling
6 fields, 6 meanings
- Tribology: Flaking of large chunks from a bearing race or gear tooth after fatigue cracks below the...
- Thermal Spray: Flakes or chunks of coating breaking away from the surface, typically under thermal...
- Refractories: Cracking off of pieces or layers from the hot face of a refractory lining.
Core
5 fields, 5 meanings
- Fiber Optics: The central glass region of an optical fiber where the light actually travels.
- PCBs: Fully cured laminate with copper on both sides, etched into inner layers and bonded with...
- Concrete: A cylinder of hardened concrete drilled out of a structure to test its strength or...
Fines
5 fields, 5 meanings
- Thermal Spray: Powder particles smaller than the specified size range, which cause buildup, spitting...
- Powder Coating: The smallest particles in a powder, roughly under 10 microns, which fluidize, charge and...
- Refractories: Smallest particle fraction of a refractory mix, which fills the gaps between coarse...
Hot spot
5 fields, 5 meanings
- Corrosion: Localized area of active corrosion on a pipeline, or the targeted anodes installed to...
- Refractories: Area of a vessel or kiln shell running hotter than normal because the lining behind it...
- Nuclear: A small spot on piping or equipment with a much higher dose rate than its surroundings.
Kick
5 fields, 5 meanings
- Adhesives: To gel or cure suddenly, as in a resin kicking in the cup or a CA kicking with...
- Electrotechnology: Shop verb for a breaker, overload or relay tripping, as in the breaker kicked.
- Photonics: To start a Kerr-lens mode-locked laser by briefly disturbing the cavity so a pulse can...
Field guides
All guidesShop talk vs spec talk: why every trade keeps two vocabularies
The rulebook and the radio describe the same job in different words. Why specialists keep two vocabularies, what each one is for, and when to switch.
Railroad talk decoded: from highball to big hole
Hoggers, hotshots, glad hands and the big hole: a field guide to the radio chatter and yard slang that keep freight trains moving and crews safe.
Pour day: concrete words from batch plant to broom finish
Slump, stingers, cream and the broom: the vocabulary of a concrete pour, from the first truck at dawn to the last sawcut after dark.
Know a word we missed?
Every crew has its own vocabulary. Send us the term, what it means and how you hear it used.