The Web Glossary

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The Web Glossary

The Web & the Internet

Internet
The global network of networks that lets computers anywhere exchange data.
World Wide Web
A system of linked pages and resources that you open in a browser, running on top of the internet.
Website
A group of related web pages published together under one domain name.
Web page
A single document on the web, with its own URL, that a browser displays.
URL
The address of a resource on the web, such as https://example.com/about.
Domain name
The human-readable name of a website, such as example.com, that points to its server.
IP address
A numeric address that identifies a device on a network, such as 93.184.216.34.
Internet service provider (ISP)
A company that connects homes and businesses to the internet.

How a Page Loads

Browser
The app you use to open and view web pages, such as Chrome, Safari, Firefox or Edge.
Server
A computer that stores websites or data and sends them out when asked.
Client
The side of a web connection that asks for something — usually your browser or app.
HTTP
The set of rules browsers and servers use to request and send web pages and data.
HTTPS
The secure version of HTTP, which encrypts traffic between browser and server.
Request and response
The basic exchange of the web: a client asks for something and the server answers.
Status code
A three-digit number in a server's response that says how the request went, such as 200 or 404.
Domain Name System (DNS)
The internet's address book, which turns domain names into IP addresses.
Content delivery network (CDN)
A network of servers around the world that keeps copies of a site's files close to visitors.

What Pages Are Made Of

HTML
The language that describes the structure and content of a web page: headings, paragraphs, links, images.
CSS
The language that controls how a web page looks: colors, fonts, spacing and layout.
JavaScript
The programming language that runs in the browser, making web pages interactive.
DOM
Document Object Model: the browser's live, editable version of a page's structure.
Hyperlink
Clickable text or an image that takes you to another page or resource.
Form
The part of a web page where you type or choose information and send it, like a login or checkout.
Responsive design
Building pages so they adapt to any screen size, from phone to wide monitor.
Accessibility
Making websites usable by everyone, including people with disabilities.

Browser Storage & Identity

Cookie
A small piece of data a website stores in your browser and gets back on every visit.
Third-party cookie
A cookie set by a different company than the site you're visiting, often an advertiser.
Session
The period a website remembers you as one visitor, usually from login until logout or timeout.
Local storage
Space in the browser where a website can save data on your device that stays after you close the tab.
Cache
A store of copies kept close by, so things load faster next time.
Login
Proving to a website who you are, usually with an email and password, to get into your account.
Tracking
Recording what people do online, on one site or across many, usually for analytics or advertising.
Consent banner
The pop-up asking visitors whether a site may use cookies and tracking.

Frontend Development

Frontend
The part of a website that runs in your browser: everything you see and click.
Framework
A ready-made foundation of code and conventions for building websites, such as React, Vue or Next.js.
Component
A reusable, self-contained piece of a user interface, like a button, card or menu.
Single-page application (SPA)
A website that loads once and then updates the page with JavaScript instead of loading new pages.
Client-side rendering
Building a page's content in the browser with JavaScript, after it arrives mostly empty.
Server-side rendering
Building a page's full HTML on the server for each request, so it arrives ready to show.
Static site
A website made of ready-built files that are the same for every visitor.
Bundler
A tool that combines a project's many code files into a few optimized files for the browser.

Backend & Data

Backend
The part of a website that runs on the server: data, business rules and everything users don't see.
Web server
Software that receives HTTP requests and sends back pages, files or data.
API
Application Programming Interface: a defined way for programs to ask another program for data or actions.
REST
A popular style for designing web APIs around resources and standard HTTP methods.
JSON
A simple text format for structured data, widely used for sending data between programs.
Database
An organized store of data that a website's backend reads and writes.
Authentication
Checking that someone is who they say they are, such as during login.
Webhook
An automatic message one system sends to another's URL when something happens.

Building & Shipping

Hosting
Renting space on a server, so a website is stored and available online.
Deploy
Putting a new version of a website live, so visitors see the changes.
Cloud
Computing power and storage rented over the internet from providers like AWS, Google Cloud or Azure.
Domain registrar
A company that sells and manages the registration of domain names.
Version control
A system that records every change to a project's files, so a team can collaborate and undo mistakes.
Open source
Software whose source code is published for anyone to use, study, change and share.
Web performance
How fast a website loads and responds, especially on real phones and connections.
Search engine optimization (SEO)
Improving a website so search engines understand it and show it higher in results.