The big Twitch dictionary

On Twitch, you will undoubtedly come across terms that you have never heard or seen before. That's why this article lists the most common terms with an explanation of what they mean. By the way, we also have separate dictionaries for e.g. esports or CS:GO.

Admin – An employee of Twitch who has website-wide moderator permissions. Should a chat not be properly moderated by channel moderators then an admin can intervene.

Affiliate – If a streamer has 50 followers and streams regularly he or she can apply for Affiliate membership. If you are an Affiliate you can turn on options to make money from your stream and add emotes to your channel. The step after Affiliate is Partner.

Andy – Andy is a generic term for a person. For example, someone who watches a lot of other videos and responds to them is a ‚React Andy‘, someone who is very busy is called ‚ADHD Andy‘ and so on. Andy is generally a neutral or even negative term.

Bits – A way for viewers to buy Cheers and donate money to streamers via Twitch. See Cheers.

Brigading – When streamers send their viewers to other channels to spread hate it is called brigading. This is logically not allowed and is often punished with a ban.

BTTV – Better Twitch TV, an extension for Google Chrome that provides a better Twitch experience. The extension is mainly used for the massive amount of free emotes.

Cheers – A way for viewers to use purchased Bits and support streamers financially.

Clip – On Twitch, it is possible to save a clip of up to one minute. This is called a clip. When a clip is used with the wrong context, for example to show someone in a bad light, this is called Clip Chimping.

Dance Game – A well-known emote on Twitch to demonstrate horror. Used, for example, when something nasty is on screen.

Donos – Short for donor or donation. Viewers who donate money to streamers are often thanked for their ‚dono‘.

Emotes – Other word for emoticon or emoji. Each channel with Affiliate or Partner status can create a number of, depending on channel size, exclusive emotes. These can only be used by (paying) subscribers of the channel. Emotes can also be used in chats from other streamers.

F – Used when something goes wrong, for example when the streamer dies in a game. Originates from Call of Duty where you have to press the F button to pay your respects to a fallen companion.

Host – When you are offline you can host another stream. When people then go to his page, the other person's stream is loaded.

Kappa – Well known emote on Twitch, way of saying something is a joke.

Kekw – Well-known emote for the Twitch browser extension FrankerfaceZ. It is an emote of the smiling face of the late Spanish comedian Juan Joya Borja. Used as a replacement for ‚LOL‘.

Moderator / Mod – A person who keeps order in a streamer's chat. Channel moderators are appointed by streamers. For website-wide moderators, see Admin.

Mald / Malding – Mix between ‚mad‘ and ‚balding‘. A term used to indicate that someone gets so angry that they (proverbially) lose their hair.

Monka(S) – Monka or MonkaS is an emote for BTTV that demonstrates nervousness.

O7 – A person doing a salute. Often used when a streamer stops streaming and says goodbye to their chat.

Overlay – A design used as a background when the streamer is not there (yet). For example, this could be before the stream starts, when a streamer takes a break, or when the streamer has just closed their stream, but the channel is still online.

Partner – The next step after Affiliate. Twitch Partners have a contract with Twitch that allows them to add more emotes, make better money with their stream, and a purple checkmark that is visible throughout the website.

Pepe – Well-known image of a frog. Several different Pepe emotes are very popular, including MonkaS, Pepehands, and Poggers.

Pepehands – An emote. When something sad happens during the stream, Pepehands is often used.

Prime – Abbreviation for Amazon Prime. A subscription service from Amazon that, in addition to benefits in the shop, includes the option to get a free monthly Twitch subscription from a streamer.

Pog / Pogchamp / Poggers – An emote used when something good or fun happens on stream.

Raid – A way to send viewers to another channel, for example when a streamer stops broadcasting and they want to send their viewers to a friend. If this is done to attack another channel it is Brigading, which is against Twitch's rules.

Subscription / Sub – Synonym for subscription. Viewers can choose to subscribe to your channel for $5, $10 or $25. As a subscriber, you have access to additional emotes, among other things. Along with donations and bits the ways to make money as a streamer on Twitch.

Subathon – A way of streaming where you give the option to your viewers to extend the stream in time by subscribing or donating. The term was made popular by streamer Ludwig.

Stream sniper – Someone who watches the stream and tries to harass the streamer through the images. For example, by joining a game at the same time and then deliberately playing badly.

Swatting – Viewers who call the police, give the address of the streamer and indicate that there is an unsafe situation, for example a hostage situation or a bomb, while nothing is going on. Hugely illegal, prison sentences for this are very heavy.