The Superhuman Dictionary

The world is full of systems, and more often than not, those systems are built by those closest to the problems they're meant to solve. That doesn't seem like a problem on the surface, but as you start to navigate these systems, as you inevitably will, countless times each day, you might start noticing there are terms that don't mean much to you, a normal human who isn't constantly waist-deep in the jargon of whatever industry came up with whatever product or service you're stuck dealing with.

And that's because superhumans, by their very nature, are much more in touch with the systems they work on than the people they're working for.

This list, an always-growing, never-exhaustive directory of superhuman terminology, is meant to make us all take a moment and realize that we don't always understand how many words we may be using inappropriately—not incorrectly, just to an audience who doesn't understand what we're saying, and shouldn't be expected to.

Most of these words are simply something you'd come across on a random website, or maybe when you're unable to reach a website. In fact, I think I've seen all of them in either a website's body copy or from my browser. Given my own line of work, they're certainly more tech-oriented, but every industry will have its own dictionary of jargon that normal people won't understand. Maybe someday I'll branch out and add categories to this list, but for now, here's what we've got:

AI / Artificial intelligance
Algorithm
Application
Authenticating / authentication

Bandwidth
Blockchain
Bluetooth
Boot
Bot
Browser

Cache
Captcha
Carrier
ChatGPT
Client
Cloud
Cookie
Cryptocurrency
Cyberspace

Dashboard
Database
DNS
Domain
Dongle
Download
Driver

Editor
Error

Fediverse
Fiber optics
Filename extension
Firewall

GB
Gif

Hacking
Hard drive
HD
Hotspot

Interface
IoT
IP address
IT / Information technology

If you're the kind of person who'd even be reading a UX blog in the first place, chances are you know most or all these words. And a lot of them seem so basic. Who doesn't know what a modem or an SD card is? But the answer to that could surprise you. As cliché as the old-person argument is, I guarantee my grandpa couldn't point out either one of them in a lineup, but he still needs to get online or take a photograph now and then.

So what? What can we do with a list like this? I always recommend having real conversations with a variety of users from all walks of life, even if you don't consider them your target user base, and seeing how they discuss their needs that your system aims to meet. Whenever possible, use the words they already use, even internally, so you don't need to translate between your jargon and their normal vocabulary. If that's easier said then done, use synonyms, helpful inline definitions, and if all else fails (or you're still afraid they might need help), some sort of tooltip to explain difficult words and phrases.

Vocabulary is an accessibility issue; the closer to our own users' level we can be with the language we use, the smoother and less error-prone their experiences will be. I'm not advocating for a dumbing-down of the words we use, but a more educated and straightforward approach in the way we use them.

Magic sign-in link
Malware
Memory
Metaverse
Modem

Network

Open source
Operating system

Patch
Phishing

Queue

Repository
Router
RSS feed

SaaS
SD card
Secure connection
Server
SLA
Smartphone
SSD
Storage
Stream
Subscribe
Submit

ToS

Upload
UI
URL
USB
User
UX

Validation
Video card
Virus
VPN
VR

Wiki
Wizard

Zip file
Zoom