Glossary
Key terms and definitions used throughout the Miden docs. Grouped thematically — if you're not sure where something lives, use your browser's find (⌘F / Ctrl+F).
Accounts
Account, AccountCode, AccountComponent, AccountId, AccountStorage, MultiSig, AccountBuilder.
Notes & assets
Note, Note script, Note tag, Note ID, Nullifier, Asset, AssetVault.
Protocol & VM
Block, Batch, Kernel, Prover, Miden Assembly, Felt, Word.
Guardian & multisig
Miden Guardian, Canonicalization, Delta, Delta Proposal, Threshold Signature.
Accounts
Account
An account is a data structure that represents an entity (user account, smart contract) on the Miden blockchain — analogous to smart contracts.
Account builder
Account builder provides a structured way to create and initialize new accounts on the Miden network with specific properties, permissions, and initial state.
AccountCode
The executable code associated with an account.
AccountComponent
A modular unit of code representing a piece of an account's functionality. Each AccountCode is composed of multiple AccountComponents.
AccountId
A value that uniquely identifies each account on Miden.
AccountIdVersion
Represents the different versions of account identifier formats supported by Miden.
AccountStorage
A key-value store associated with an account. Made up of storage slots.
MultiSig
A multi-signature account on Miden that requires a configurable threshold (N-of-M) of authorized signers to approve transactions before execution. MultiSig workflows are coordinated through Miden Guardian.
Notes & assets
Note
A fundamental data structure that represents an offchain asset or a piece of information that can be transferred between accounts. Miden's UTXO-like model is designed around notes. Output notes are new notes created by a transaction; input notes are those consumed (spent) by a transaction.
Note script
A program that defines the rules and conditions under which a note can be consumed.
Note tag
An identifier or metadata associated with notes that provides additional filtering capabilities.
Note ID
A unique identifier assigned to each note to distinguish it from other notes.
Nullifier
A cryptographic commitment that marks a note as spent, preventing it from being consumed again.
Asset
A digital resource with value that can be owned, transferred, and managed within the Miden blockchain.
AssetVault
The container used for managing assets within accounts. Provides a way to store and transfer assets associated with each account.
Protocol & VM
Block
A fundamental data structure that groups multiple batches together and forms the blockchain's state.
Batch
A collection of transactions grouped together, to be aggregated into blocks — improves network throughput.
Kernel
A fundamental module of the Miden VM that acts as a base layer, providing core functionality and security guarantees for the protocol.
Prover
Responsible for generating zero-knowledge proofs that attest to the correctness of program execution without revealing the underlying data.
Miden Operator
An entity that runs the node infrastructure powering the Miden network. Operators verify transaction proofs, record created notes and consumed-note nullifiers in the state databases, build the batches and blocks that progress the chain, and execute network transactions on behalf of users (for example, consuming a note against a public DEX contract).
Miden Assembly
An assembly language specifically designed for the Miden VM — a low-level language with specialized instructions optimized for zero-knowledge proof generation.
Felt
A Felt (Field Element) is the primitive cryptographic data type used by the Miden VM. It represents an element in the finite (Goldilocks) field: p = 2^64 − 2^32 + 1.
Word
A data structure that represents the basic unit of computation and storage in Miden. Composed of four Felts.
Guardian & multisig
Miden Guardian
Infrastructure built by OpenZeppelin for managing private account state on Miden. Guardian provides a server and client SDKs for backing up, syncing, and coordinating state across devices and parties without trust assumptions. See the Miden Guardian documentation.
Canonicalization
The background process by which Miden Guardian promotes candidate deltas to canonical status by verifying them against the Miden network.
Delta
A Delta represents the changes between two states s and s'. Applying a Delta d to s produces s'.
Delta Proposal
A coordination mechanism in Miden Guardian that allows multiple signers to propose, review, and co-sign state changes before they are promoted to a canonical delta.
Threshold Signature
A cryptographic scheme where a minimum number of signers (the threshold) out of a total group must sign for a transaction to be valid. Used in Miden's MultiSig accounts.