Cannabis glossary

Adam says
Don't know a word the budtender used? Look it up here. No one knows them all on day one.

510 thread

The standard screw size most vape carts and batteries share, so they fit together. Learn more

Badder

A soft, opaque texture of cannabis concentrate. Also spelled budder. The name describes texture, not strength; the label tells you the THC. Learn more

Banger

The quartz, titanium or ceramic cup on a dab rig that is heated so a dab vaporizes on contact. Also called a nail. Learn more

Bat

A one hitter, the slim straight pipe that holds one or two pulls. Also called an oney or a taster. Learn more

BHO

Butane hash oil: concentrates extracted with butane. Most live resin belongs to this family. Licensed markets test for leftover solvent. Learn more

Blunt

Cannabis rolled in a cigar or tobacco-leaf wrap. Usually bigger than a joint, and the wrap contains tobacco. Learn more

Bong

A water pipe. Smoke passes through water before you inhale it. Learn more

Bowl

The part of a pipe or bong that holds the flower. "Packing a bowl" means filling it. Learn more

Bubble hash

A concentrate made by separating trichomes from the plant with ice water. Also called ice water hash. Learn more

Bubbler

A small hand pipe with a little water chamber, halfway between a pipe and a bong. Learn more

Budtender

The dispensary employee who helps you choose products. Learn more

Canoe

A joint burning down one side, usually from uneven packing or lighting only one edge. Learn more

Carb

The small side hole on a pipe. Cover it while you light, uncover it to clear the smoke. Not every pipe has one. Learn more

Cart

Short for cartridge. A small container of cannabis oil that screws onto a vape battery. Learn more

Cashed

A bowl that is finished, all ash. Learn more

CBD

Cannabidiol. A cannabis compound that doesn't cause a high. Learn more

CBN

Cannabinol. Forms as THC ages and breaks down. Learn more

Concentrate

A strong, processed cannabis product like wax, shatter, rosin, or oil. Not for beginners. Learn more

Cone

A joint that tapers from the tip to a wider end, and the pre-rolled empty papers shaped that way. Most pre-rolls are cones. Learn more

Contact high

Feeling cannabis effects from breathing other people's smoke in a closed space. Smelling cannabis does not do it; heavy smoke in an unventilated room can, mildly. Learn more

Cornering

Lighting just one edge of a packed bowl so the rest stays fresh for the next pull or the next person. Learn more

Couch lock

The heavy, don't-want-to-get-up feeling some people get from cannabis. Learn more

Crossfaded

Being drunk and high at the same time. Mixing usually makes you more impaired than either one alone. Learn more

Crutch

The small roll of cardboard at the mouth end of a joint. Also called a tip or filter, though it does not filter anything. Learn more

Dab

A small amount of concentrate that's heated and inhaled. Very strong. Learn more

Dab rig

A small water pipe with a heated cup (banger) in place of a bowl, used to vaporize concentrates. An e-rig heats the cup electrically. Learn more

Dank

Slang for high-quality, strong-smelling cannabis.

Decarboxylation

Decarb for short. Heating cannabis to turn THCA into THC. It's why raw flower does little on its own. Learn more

Diamonds

Crystals that form in some concentrates, mostly THCA, the form THC takes before it is heated. The name is a texture; the label tells you the strength. Learn more

Dispensary

A licensed store that sells cannabis. Learn more

Distillate

Very refined cannabis oil, often used in vape carts, with flavor added back. Learn more

Dugout

A pocket box, usually wood, with a hole for a one hitter and a chamber for ground flower. Press the pipe into the chamber to pack it. Learn more

Edible

Food or drink made with cannabis. Takes longer to kick in and lasts longer than smoking. Learn more

Eighth

An eighth of an ounce. Sold as 3.5 grams. Learn more

Entourage effect

The idea that cannabis compounds work better together than alone. Still being studied. Learn more

Flower

The dried buds of the cannabis plant. What most people picture as "weed." Learn more

Full melt

The top grades of bubble hash (five and six star), which bubble away almost completely when heated and can be dabbed like other concentrates. Learn more

Full spectrum

An extract that keeps most of the plant's compounds, including terpenes, as live resin and rosin do. Distillate is the opposite: refined down to THC. Learn more

Greening out

Having too much cannabis. Anxiety, racing heart, nausea, or dizziness. It passes. Learn more

Hash

Compressed trichomes. Stronger than flower.

Hash rosin

Rosin pressed from bubble hash with heat and pressure, with no solvent. Most live rosin is hash rosin made from fresh-frozen plants. Learn more

Hemp wrap

A tobacco-free wrap made from hemp that rolls and looks like a blunt. Palm-leaf wraps are similar. Learn more

Hotbox

Smoking in a sealed space, usually a car, on purpose. A closed car is the closest everyday version of the sealed-room study in which non-smokers absorbed measurable THC and felt mildly sedated. Learn more

Hybrid

A plant bred from both indica and sativa types. The label doesn't reliably predict effects. Learn more

Ice water hash

Another name for bubble hash: resin glands washed off cannabis, often frozen, with ice water and sifted through mesh bags, with no solvent. Learn more

Indica

A label for one type of cannabis plant, often marketed as relaxing. Research shows labels don't reliably match what's inside. Learn more

Infused pre-roll

A pre-roll with concentrate added to the flower, such as kief, hash, distillate or diamonds. Much stronger than a plain pre-roll and not a first-time product. Learn more

ISO

Isopropyl (rubbing) alcohol, the usual cleaner for glass pipes and bongs. Flammable, with fumes that irritate; rinse until the smell is gone. Learn more

Joint

Cannabis rolled in rolling paper, without tobacco. Learn more

Kief

The loose, powdery trichomes that collect at the bottom of a grinder. Learn more

Liquid diamonds

THCA crystals melted into live resin sauce and sold in vape carts as a high-THC, high-flavor middle ground between distillate and live resin. Learn more

Live resin

Concentrate made from fresh-frozen plants to keep more terpenes. Learn more

Live rosin

Concentrate pressed with heat and pressure, no solvents, usually from hash made from fresh-frozen plants. Learn more

Microdosing

Taking a much smaller amount of THC than a typical serving. Learn more

Minor cannabinoids

The less common cannabinoids, such as CBG, CBN, CBC and THCV, usually present in small amounts next to THC and CBD. Learn more

Moon rocks

Buds dipped in oil and rolled in kief. Extremely strong. Not for beginners. Learn more

One hitter

A small, slim pipe whose bowl holds one or two pulls. Learn more

Ounce

28 grams in dispensary terms. Also called a zip. Learn more

Paranoia

The feeling of being watched or judged. A common, temporary effect of too much THC, more likely with strong products and little experience. Learn more

Percolator

A section inside some bongs that breaks the smoke into smaller bubbles for more cooling. Often shortened to perc. Not required. Learn more

Pinner

A thin joint. Learn more

Pistils

The small hairs on cannabis buds, often orange, red, or white. Learn more

Pre-roll

A joint that comes already rolled. Learn more

QP

A quarter pound. About 112 grams. Learn more

Quarter

A quarter ounce. Sold as 7 grams. Learn more

Reefer

Old-school slang for cannabis.

Roach

The last bit of a joint. Learn more

Rosin

Cannabis oil pressed out of flower or hash with heat and pressure, with no solvent. Live rosin starts from fresh-frozen plants. Learn more

Ruderalis

A hardy, low-THC type of cannabis plant. Rarely sold on its own.

Sativa

A label for one type of cannabis plant, often marketed as energizing. Labels don't reliably predict effects. Learn more

Sauce

A runny concentrate texture with crystals in it. Like shatter, wax and badder, the name describes texture, not strength; read the label. Learn more

Set and setting

Your mood and your surroundings, which shape how a high goes. A strong product, a big dose, little experience and a tense room are the usual ingredients of a bad one. Learn more

Shake

Small bits of flower left at the bottom of a jar or bag. Cheaper, same plant.

Shatter

A glassy, brittle sheet of cannabis concentrate. A texture, not a strength. Learn more

Slide

The removable bowl on a bong. Pull it out to clear the smoke from the chamber. Learn more

Solventless

Made without a chemical solvent. Bubble hash, dry sift and rosin are solventless; live resin, wax, shatter and distillate are not. Learn more

Spliff

Cannabis mixed with tobacco and rolled in paper. Learn more

Sploof

A tube stuffed with dryer sheets or carbon that people exhale through. It cuts some smell; it does not remove smoke from the room. Learn more

Terpenes

Aroma compounds that give each strain its smell. Also found in fruit, herbs, and flowers. Learn more

THC

Tetrahydrocannabinol. The main compound that gets you high. Learn more

THCA

The acid form of THC found in the raw plant. It turns into THC when heated. Learn more

Tincture

Liquid cannabis extract taken as drops, often under the tongue. Learn more

Tolerance

How much cannabis it takes for you to feel effects. Rises with regular use.

Topical

Lotions or balms with cannabis applied to skin. Generally no high. Learn more

Trichomes

The tiny, crystal-like glands on buds where THC, CBD, and terpenes are made. Learn more

Volatile sulfur compounds

The sulfur compounds a 2021 study identified as the main source of the skunk note in cannabis, close relatives of the ones in skunk spray and garlic. In that study they peaked during curing and dropped after about a week of storage. Learn more

Wax

A soft, opaque cannabis concentrate made with a solvent. One of the dab textures. Learn more

Winterization

The cold-filtering step that pulls waxes and fats out of an extract before it is distilled. Learn more

Zaza

Slang for premium, often exotic-smelling cannabis.

Common questions