The Basic Fortnite Terms And Their Meanings
After the hype of PUBG died down, players went berserk when Fortnite got released, and the hype for this game still hasn’t died down. It was released in 2017, and since then, it has been the most played game by children, men, and women, you name it!
Fortnite took the Battle Royale to a whole new level with the introduction of building. Battle Royale is one of the game modes where the last person standing out of a hundred players is the victor of the match.
Not only this, Fortnite has many seasons, currently on the ninth, with new characters, maps, game modes being continuously added, and a never-ending stream of stories. This game is single-player and multiplayer, so you can play with or against your friends!
Fortnite is a pretty simple game to play, and if you are a new player, you will get the hang of it in absolutely no time. What complicates the whole process is the usage of complicated gaming terms used while playing the game.
Whether you are a new player, an observer of the game, or playing in a team for the first time, you might hear some terms being used that you might not be familiar with. To make it easier for you guys, we have compiled a list of all the Fortnite terms and their meanings so that you can communicate effectively with your teammates when playing the game.
--- Health And Shields ---
Mini’s (Mini Shields)
While playing Fortnite, when someone asks you for a mini, here is what it means. Minis are small shield potions that heal 25 shields at a time and have a shield cap of 50. Moreover, you can only stack six minis at the same time.
Big Pot
“I need a big pot!”
Don’t know what that means? The term Big Pot refers to a large shield potion, which can give you 50 shields and takes 5 seconds to drink. Two of these potions can be used to fill your shield up to a hundred.
Blue
When fighting an opponent, your damage counter turns up in blue, which means that you are damaging your opponent’s shield. This can be used to tell your teammates how strong or weak your opponent is so you can be ready for the fight.
White
When you shoot at an opponent, and the damage counter over their head appears white in color, it means that the opponent doesn’t have any shields and has less than 100 health. This is usually a good indicator that you should push the enemy and try to get the kill.
Meds
The general term for all the healing items in Fortnite is “Meds.” If someone asks you for Meds, they ask if you have any item in your inventory that could be used for healing, shield, or health. It usually happens when they are low on health.
Heals
Heals is a similar term to “Meds,” with the difference that sometimes Heals refer to only the items that increase your health, whereas Meds means items for increasing both health and shields.
--- Combat ---
Clutch
Clutch, or clutching, means winning in an unwinnable situation. For example, if your friend gets into a fight against a squad of four players and wins, you would say that he “clutched the situation.” Or if all your teammates died and you won the game alone, it would mean you “clutched the match.”
Throw/Whiff/Choking
These terms in Fortnite are used when someone cannot play as well as they normally would or if someone misses an easy kill. For example, if you miss an easy snipe onto a player that is standing still, you whiffed.
Cracked
The term Cracked has two interpretations in Fortnite. The first meaning is when you damage all the shields of an opponent. When you do so, you will hear a sound that is similar to glass cracking. E.g., “I cracked the player in that house.”
The second use of Cracked is when someone is really skilled in the game. When you see a player whose building and shooting skills are extremely good, you can say, “That player is absolutely cracked!”
Low
“I’m so low!”
Low is when someone is really low on health. If you shoot an enemy and take away most of his HP, you can say, “That guy is low.”
One Shot
One shot is used similarly to “low”, with one major difference. One shot is when someone is so low on HP, that they can be killed with just one more shot.
Use this term properly with your teammates when you are confident that the player really is one shot. Saying “One Shot” incorrectly can potentially get your teammates killed, which leads to arguments.
Tag/Tagged
Tagging an enemy player simply means giving any amount of damage to them. If you land just one or two shots, you can say that the player is tagged .
Lasered/Beamed
Lasering someone or being Lasered refers to someone hitting multiple bullets consecutively, usually with an Assault Rifle. It results in the player being extremely low or killed.
Since ARs in Fortnite have bullet spread, spraying down enemies with them is difficult. This is why it is a big deal to laser someone.
High Ground
Having the High Ground in Fortnite means that you are at least one story higher than your opponent. This gives you a significant advantage in fights since the opponent has to look up to shoot at you. You should always try to fight for the high ground when taking a fight.
ADS - Aim Down Sights
ADS or Aiming Down Sights means to scope your weapon. In weapons like ARs or Snipers, it makes you a lot more accurate, which is why you should ADS most of the time when using these weapons.
In shotguns, it reduces your bullet spread, focusing the damage on a smaller area. Players don’t usually ADS most of the time when using shotguns since the close-range fights are very hectic, and there isn’t much time to do so.
Blank Shot
Firing a Blank Shot means that your bullet(s) did successfully land on a player (you will see a hit marker on your screen as proof), but you didn’t do any damage. This usually happens due to a slow connection or network error which is why your bullet doesn’t register on the server.
Sweat
“This lobby is full of Sweats.”
When you come against a player in Fortnite who is good at building and editing, that player is called a Sweat .
Box
A 1x1 structure in Fortnite is called a Box. Boxing a player in means to trap him inside your 1x1 box so he can’t escape and has to break out. This allows you to edit in easily and shoot him.
Finishing/Thrifting
Finishing or Thrifting is called you kill a knocked down player in Fortnite. It is usually a good practice because it secures the kill and doesn't allow the enemies to revive their teammates. But it is annoying when it happens to you.
Bloom/Spray
Bloom or Spray in Fortnite is the random spread of Bullets when you Auto Fire your weapons like ARs or SMGs.
Weapons in Fortnite don’t have recoil patterns that the players can memorize. Instead, they have Bloom which increases random in the weapon spray.
Revive/Res/Rez
“Rez me!”
“They are Res-ing!”
Rez or Res in Fortnite is simply the short form of reviving. When someone asks you to Res them, they are knocked down and want you to revive them.
-- Movement --
Rotate
Rotating in Fortnite means repositioning yourself on the map and going to a more advantageous location. Knowing when to rotate in Fortnite can give you an advantage over other players and allow you to win the game.
Aggro/W-Key/Push
W-key-ing or pushing someone in Fortnite means rushing up to an opponent to try to force a fight with them. If you or your squad are confident that they can take a certain fight and win easily, then you will often hear the call to push them and get the element of surprise on them.
Zone
The Zone or Storm in Fortnite is the shrinking circle that becomes smaller as the game progresses. The players that are caught outside the Safezone take damage until they get back in.
The Zone forces players to get near each other to encourage more fights.
-- Building --
Matts
Matts in Fortnite are the materials that are required to build player structures. Each structure requires ten materials to build.
Three types of Matts are available to the players in Fortnite; Wood, Brick, and Metal.
Farm/Farming
Farming materials in Fortnite means collecting materials by chopping down structures such as Trees, Stone, and walls to collect more Matts. Players should take some time in every game to Farm up materials so they don’t run out in the middle of a build fight .
90s
90s in Fortnite is a structure that players build to gain more height quickly. If you are engaging in a fight and want to have the height advantage over your enemies, then a good idea would be to do some 90s.
Make sure to practice these beforehand, so you don’t mess them up in a real match of Fortnite.
Build Fight
Build Fighting in Fortnite is when two players try to outbuild each other and try to take more height at the same time. The goal is to try to find a weakness in the opponent's builds and try to kill him.
Tunneling
Tunneling means to move in Fortnite while building a box around you as you move. This is usually done in the end-game in sweaty matches of Fortnite to cover yourself from all angles. This also allows you to move inside the zone without being shot.
Pyramid
The Roof structure in Fortnite is also called the Pyramid because of its resemblance to one. The Pyramid is an interesting structure, and you should learn to use it to your advantage.
-- Others --
OG
Referring to places, people, or items as OG means they are from the early days of Fortnite. The actual meaning of OG is Original Gangster .
POI
POI or Point Of Interest refers to the named locations in Fortnite. You can see all the POIs in Fortnite by opening the map using the Tab key.
Hot Drop
Hot Dropping means landing in a crowded POI when you jump out of the Battle Bus at the start of a match. Hot Drop locations are usually the ones that are on the route of the Battle Bus or near the center of the map.
If you decide to Hot Drop, you will have low chances of surviving as you’ll have to fight many players at the same time while searching for good loot.
Safe Landing
Safe Landing is the opposite of Hot Dropping. It means landing in a location that is much farther away from the Battle Bus’s route. This minimizes your chances of running into any player and gives you plenty of time to loot up and prepare for fighting.
Nerf
Whenever a weapon or item is Nerfed in Fortnite, it means that the developers changed its statistics (usually damage) to make it less powerful than it was before.
Buff
Buff in Fortnite has the opposite meaning to Nerf. When a weapon or item gets buffed, its statistics get increased to make it more powerful than it was before.
Fortnite Developers Epic Games are constantly nerfing and buffing weapons to make them more balanced.
Vaulted
In Fortnite, a weapon is Vaulted when it is removed from the list of available weapons in Fortnite Battle Royale.
Unvaulted
When a vaulted weapon or item is added back to the list of items in the game, it is said that it got Unvaulted.
OP
OP stands for OverPowered. A weapon is called OP when it is more powerful than the other weapons in Fortnite.
Broken
“This gun is Broken!”
It is called Broken when an item, weapon, or feature in Fortnite doesn’t work the way it is supposed to. Such items usually get fixed in a short time.
Quests
The challenges in Fortnite are now called Quests.
Completing Quests in Fortnite gives you XP to allow you to earn stars which are used for collecting rewards from the Battle Pass.
XP
XP is a sort of experience in Fortnite which can be obtained from playing matches or completing Quests.
Players can level up and obtain five battle pass stars after collecting 80,000 XP.
Scrim
Scrims are matches used by professional players to practice and improve their skills against other pro players. If players want to scrim against each other, they can join custom Scrim maps using their Island Codes.
Island Code
If you want to join a custom Creative Map in Fortnite, you can do so by entering its Island Code in the game. These codes are shared by the map makers and can be entered into the game from the main menu.
Arena
Arena mode is the competitive mode in Fortnite, which is available to play in Solos, Duos, or Trios. Arena mode is based on “Divisions,” and you can rank up to a higher Division by earning “Hype” points in-game.
Arena mode is currently part of the active Fortnite game mode playlist.
Siphon
Siphon in Fortnite is a feature that allows players to regenerate 50 Health or Shields for every elimination they get in the game. It is only available in the Arena mode.
