Welcome to our comprehensive glossary of League of Legends terms, acronyms, and slang. This guide is designed to help both new and experienced players stay up-to-date with the ever-evolving vocabulary used in-game and in the broader LoL community, including forums and Discord.
LoL Terms and Definitions
1-3-1:
A split push formation where one team member is in the Top lane, three are in the Mid lane, and one is in the Bot lane.
1-4:
A split push strategy where one team member pushes a side lane while the other four members push another lane together.
ADC (Attack Damage Carry):
A champion role focused on dealing high physical damage, typically played in the Bot lane. Recently, this role has also been referred to as "Bot carry" due to the emergence of non-traditional ADC champions such as mages and melee champions.
AFK (Away From Keyboard):
- Physically not present at the computer.
- Performing actions mindlessly or without much thought (e.g., "Stop AFK farming")
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All-in:
Committing all available resources (abilities, cooldowns, summoner spells) to secure a kill on an enemy champion.
AoE (Area of Effect):
An ability or effect that can damage or impact multiple targets simultaneously within a specific area.
Autofill:
When the matchmaking system assigns you a role you did not queue for (e.g., queuing as Top/Mid but being assigned Support).
B (Back):
- A command to retreat (e.g., "We should b, this isn't a good fight for us")
- Indicates a champion is recalling to base (e.g., "I'm out of wards, need to b")
Blind Pick:
An early champion selection during the draft phase, leaving the picked champion vulnerable to being countered.
Buff:
- An ability or effect that empowers a champion or ally, usually by increasing stats.
- A balance change that improves a champion's strength in a patch.
Bot Laner:
- As a plural, refers to the Bottom lane duo consisting of the ADC and Support.
- As a singular, typically refers to the ADC or primary damage dealer in the Bot lane.
Burst: Dealing a large amount of damage instantly through an attack or ability.
Camp:
- The spawn location of a jungle monster or group of monsters.
- Repeatedly ganking the same lane to hinder an enemy's progress (e.g., "The Lee Sin camped top lane to keep the enemy Nasus behind").
Champion Pool:
A set of champions a player regularly uses to climb the ranked ladder or is known for playing proficiently. Usually includes a main pick, a secondary option, and counterpicks.
Cheese:
An unconventional, often high-risk/high-reward strategy that can be highly effective if unexpected but is easily countered if anticipated.
CD (Cooldown):
The time between an ability's use and when it becomes available again.
CC (Crowd Control):
Effects that limit a champion's ability to move or act, such as stuns, slows, and knockups.
Dive:
Attempting to kill an opponent while they are under the protection of their turret.
DoT (Damage over Time):
An ability, attack, or effect that deals damage gradually over a period of time.
DPS (Damage per Second):
The amount of damage dealt by a champion, ability, or item over one second.
Double Buff:
When a champion simultaneously possesses both the Blue and Red buffs.
Drake (Dragon):
Elemental dragons that spawn every 5 minutes starting at the 5-minute mark, rotating between Infernal, Mountain, Cloud, and Ocean drakes. After 35 minutes, the Elder Dragon replaces the elemental drakes.
Early Game:
The first 10-15 minutes of a match, characterized by a focus on farming and laning. Also known as the laning phase.
Elder Drake:
A powerful dragon that spawns 5 minutes after the last elemental drake is defeated, granting the Aspect of the Dragon buff to the team that slays it.
ELO:
Originally a chess rating system, now often used to refer to a player's skill level in League of Legends (e.g., "low ELO" for Iron to Platinum, "high ELO" for Diamond to Challenger).
Farm:
The act of last-hitting minions or monsters to accumulate gold and experience.
Facecheck:
Entering a bush or any area obscured by the Fog of War without vision of potential threats.
Fed:
A champion that has gained a significant advantage in gold, levels, and/or kills, making them much stronger than their opponents.
Focus:
Prioritizing damage onto a specific target (e.g., "Their Master Yi is fed, we should focus him").
Leash:
Assisting a jungler with their first camp by dealing damage to the monster before leaving to lane.
Locket:
Refers to the support item Locket of the Iron Solari.
Kite:
Attacking while maintaining distance from an enemy, using movement abilities or crowd control to avoid retaliation.
