Pokémon Fandom

Outsiders generically refer to fights as 'monster battles,' while insiders simply say 'battles,' denoting structured gameplay engagements within the Pokémon games and culture.

Casual observers talk about 'moves learned,' while insiders group those into a 'moveset,' the combination of moves a Pokémon currently knows.

Casual observers describe it as a 'record of creatures caught,' while insiders use 'Pokédex,' the iconic in-game encyclopedia of all Pokémon species.

Casual observers might call the franchise 'Pocket Monsters' to describe the concept, but insiders use the shortened and globally recognized brand name 'Pokémon,' a contraction of 'Pocket Monsters.'

Casual observers may over-specify moves by calling them 'special attack moves,' but insiders commonly abbreviate to 'special moves,' referring to one category of moves involving special stats.

Outsiders describe Pokémon strengths and weaknesses as 'typing affinities,' but insiders simply use 'typing' to refer to Pokémon elemental classification.

Outsiders might describe them as randomly generated creatures, but insiders say 'wild Pokémon' to reference non-trainer encountered Pokémon in the games.

Casual observers might generically call moves powerful attacks, while insiders use 'Z-Move' referring to a specific game mechanic introduced in later Pokémon games.

Outsiders use the full word 'evolution' describing Pokémon transformation, but insiders often shorten it to 'Evo' as a quick, informal term.

While outsiders say 'legendary creatures' to indicate rare Pokémon, insiders use the term 'Legendaries' as a shorthand for powerful, rare Pokémon key to lore and gameplay.

Non-members describe unusually colored Pokémon as 'shiny variant,' but insiders simply use 'Shiny' to denote rare alternate color Pokémon highly sought after.

'STAB' stands for 'Same-Type Attack Bonus' and is an insider concept indicating bonus damage for moves matching the Pokémon's type, unknown to casual observers.

Casual observers say 'trading cards,' but insiders refer to the Pokémon Trading Card Game as the 'TCG,' a widely recognized acronym in the community.

Non-members describe the concept as catching creatures, but insiders use the catchphrase 'Catch ’em all,' signifying the franchise's core gameplay and collecting challenge.

Outsiders refer to competitive play generally, but insiders mention 'Smogon,' a globally recognized competitive community and rule standard within Pokémon battling.

'Wonder Trade' is a globally used feature name for random trades with strangers, commonly used by insiders but called generically by outsiders.