hodl
Hodl (verb) means to keep holding a cryptocurrency rather than selling it, particularly while its price is falling. Example: “He has hodled the same coins through three crashes without selling any of them.”
How to use hodl
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishKeeping your crypto instead of selling it.
Slang, and deliberately so; the misspelling is the point and correcting it to hodl-with-an-l misses the joke. Common in forums, memes and headlines, out of place in formal financial writing.
A person who does this is a hodler. The word is a verb and a noun but never an adjective.
Trace the full origin ↓Fill the gap
Can you complete this real example?
He has _____ the same coins through three crashes without selling any of them.
Etymology
From a misspelling of holding in a 2013 post on the Bitcointalk forum titled I AM HODLING, which was picked up and reused as a term in its own right; it is often backronymed as hold on for dear life, but that reading came afterwards.
Related words
Frequently asked questions
Does hodl stand for hold on for dear life?
Not originally. It began as a typing error for holding in a 2013 forum post, and the hold on for dear life reading was invented later to fit the letters. Both explanations circulate, but the misspelling came first.
What is the difference between hodl and diamond hands?
Hodl describes the act of not selling. Diamond hands describes the temperament of someone who does not sell under pressure, and is used as a compliment or a boast. The two overlap, but diamond hands is about the person and hodl is about the behaviour.
Is hodl a real word?
It is real in the sense that dictionaries record words people actually use, and this one has been in continuous use since 2013 across forums, journalism and marketing. It remains slang, and its unusual spelling is fixed; hodel and hoddle are not variants.
What is the meaning of hodl?
"hodl" (verb) means to keep holding a cryptocurrency rather than selling it, particularly while its price is falling.