Twitter Vocabulary

The following terms are necessary for the effective use of Twitter and to understand others on Twitter. You'll need to know each of these terms and be able to use them yourself in order to get value from using Twitter.

Follow/Follower/Following: When you "follow" someone on Twitter, you'll see their Tweets in your Twitterstream. If they follow you, you'll see theirs.
Tweet: A message of 140 characters or less that is displayed to your followers on Twitter and included in search results.
Twitterstream: The feed of others' Tweets that you see when you log in to Twitter.
@reply: If you post another user's username with an @ symbol directly prefacing it, that text will show up as a link to the other user's Twitter page. They'll also be able to see your Tweet by clicking where it says @theirusername on the side of their Twitter page. When you use the small arrow in the lower right corner of a Tweet to reply to that person, you've sent an @reply.
DM: A DM, or "Direct Message," is a message that is sent to another user and can only be read by the recipient and the person who sent the message. You can only DM individuals if they are following you.
Hashtag: Think of this as a "subject line" for your Tweet. A hashtag is a word or series of words (no spaces or punctuation) preceeded by a pound sign and referring to the topic or category of a Tweet. For example, I could link to this post and tag it #vocab.
RT: A RT, or Retweet, is the redistribution of another user's tweet to your own network. Twitter etiquette dictates that a retweet should be proceeded with "RT @originalpostersusername." For example, to enter the AC Twitter Challenge, post the following Retweet: "RT @acnews Take the AC Twitter Challenge! http://bit.ly/WN1GH You could win a netbook or other fabulous prizes. #acsweeps."

Useful Twitter Vocabulary:

The following terms will increase your understanding of Twitter and enable you to more fully engage with other users.

Twitterverse: Like the blogosphere, but on Twitter. The Twitterverse is everything Twitter.
Tweeps: One of several ways to refer to Twitter users. Others include "Tweeple" or "Twersons."
Twoll: Someone who harasses others on Twitter to get a reaction.
TwitterSpam: Using Twitter to obnoxiously promote a product or service. For example, there are numerous fake Twitter accounts that Tweet messages like, "Just got my free laptop!" with a link to a scam website.
Tweetup: An event where you can meet other Twitter users in the "real world."
Block: Blocking another Twitter user prevents them from following you or seeing your tweets in their Twitterstream.
Tweet Dreams: A friendly way to say goodnight.
Follow Friday: Every Friday, many Twitter users participate in Follow Friday by listing some of their favorite Tweeple and tagging that Tweet with the hashtags #followfriday and/or #ff.
Tweeple Tuesday: Like Follow Friday, except instead of making a list of people to follow, Twitter users introduce two of their friends to one another via Twitter. Like so: "@Myfriend, do you know @otherfriend? You both really love Twitter! #tweepletuesday."
Woof Wednesday: Like the last two, but a day to Tweet about your pets and pet-related stuff.
Twilebrity: A celebrity on Twitter.
Twitterfail: Someone using Twitter so badly it's hilarious.
Trending Topic: The topics on the Twitter sidebar are the most-tweeted hashtags, words and phrases of the day. These are called trending topics.

If you have another term you'd like defined, leave a comment.

Now, go forth and Tweet! Have fun, and don't forget to enter the AC Twitter Challenge.