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LoL glossary: MMR, elo, LP, tempo, prio and the terms you need to understand
Half of every LoL conversation is in code: MMR, prio, tempo, scaling, weakside… If you don't understand the terms, you don't understand the advice, and you end up applying rules you don't grasp. This glossary explains the jargon that actually affects your decisions, grouped by topic and in plain language.
Ranked and progression
The terms that define where you are and why you climb or drop:
- Elo: your relative skill level. Colloquially, your rank (Iron, Bronze, Silver…). The name comes from a chess rating system.
- MMR (Matchmaking Rating): your real hidden score. It decides who you play against and how much LP you win or lose. If you gain more LP than you lose, your MMR is above your visible rank.
- LP (League Points): the visible points within your division, 0 to 100. Ranking up a division costs 100 LP and a promo series.
- Hardstuck: being stuck at a rank for a long time. Almost always from repeating the same mistakes, not bad luck.
- Smurf: a better player's secondary account below their real rank. Inting: losing on purpose or playing so badly it looks like it.
Macro and the map
The jargon of the decisions that win games:
- Tempo: the initiative. Having tempo means having free seconds to do something on the map while the enemy can't respond.
- Prio (priority): having your lane pushed and being able to move before your direct opponent. Mid prio decides who reaches objectives first.
- Scaling: how strong a champion gets over time and with items. A "scaling" champion is weak early and strong late.
- Power spike: the moment a champion becomes especially strong (a key item, a level, their ult). Fighting on your spike and avoiding the enemy's is pure macro.
- Weakside / strongside: the side of the map the team does NOT commit resources to (weak) versus the one it does (strong). Split push: pushing a side lane just to apply pressure.
Micro and fights
The terms for what you do with your champion moment to moment:
- Trading: exchanging damage with your opponent in lane, aiming to come out ahead in health or resources.
- Kiting: attacking and moving in alternation to deal damage without taking it. Orb walking / spacing: the precise version, managing the distance to your opponent.
- Peel: protecting your carry by stopping whoever attacks them. Focus: concentrating damage on one specific target in a fight.
- Zoning: using the threat of your damage to keep the enemy away from something (an objective, an ally, a wave) without actually fighting.
Chat jargon
And what you'll see typed every game:
- Diff: difference. "Jg diff" = your jungler was worse than the enemy's. Gap: a huge skill distance between two players.
- FF / FF15: to surrender (forfeit). The 15 is the earliest minute to vote surrender.
- OTP (One Trick Pony): a player who only plays one champion. Reset: returning to base to buy and heal.
- Win condition: the plan by which your team can win (e.g. "scale until the ADC is unstoppable"). Snowball: when a small lead turns into a huge one on its own.
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