Glossary
Degen
Short for "degenerate" — embraces high-risk, high-reward speculation as an identity. Used self-descriptively and ironically by traders deep in DeFi or memecoin culture.
"Degen" — short for "degenerate" — is crypto's term of art (and self-identification) for traders who lean into the riskiest on-chain activity: leveraged perps, fresh memecoin launches, unaudited protocols, anonymous teams, high-risk yield farms.
The word is most often used self-descriptively, with implied irony — degens take pride in surviving (or wearing as scars) the trades that would never pass professional risk management. "Degen play" is a near-universal crypto phrase for any high-conviction, high-risk position.