SEO Jargon Glossary: 92 Terms Explained In Plain English

If you’ve spent more than five minutes reading about search engine optimization, you’ve probably felt like you needed a translator.

Between “canonical URL,” “structured data,” “core web vitals,” and “long tail keyword,” SEO jargon has a way of making simple concepts sound technical and intimidating. And the worst part is that most of these SEO terms aren’t actually that complicated once you strip away the buzzwords.

This SEO glossary is here to fix that.

Whether you’re working in content marketing, running Google Ads, managing local SEO through Google Business Profile, or just trying to understand why your web page isn’t showing up in Google search, this guide breaks down the most common SEO terminology in plain English.

No fluff. No overcomplicated definitions.

Just clear explanations of the SEO jargon you’ll see in Google Search Console, Google Analytics, Yoast SEO, and pretty much every SEO tool out there.

Key Takeaways:

• This SEO glossary explains the most common SEO jargon and SEO terms in plain English so you can actually understand what people mean.
• Most SEO terminology sounds complex, but it usually connects back to how a search engine crawls, ranks, and displays a web page in a search result.
• If you understand the basics of keyword research, technical SEO, link building, and user experience, you already understand most of search engine optimization.
• You don’t need to memorize every SEO term to improve search engine ranking. You just need to know what each term actually refers to and when it matters.

Link building cheat sheet

Gain access to the 3-step strategy we use to earn over 86 high-quality backlinks each month.

Download for free

On-Page SEO Jargon

Title Tag
The clickable headline that appears in a search result on a search engine results page. It tells search engines and users what a web page is about.

Meta Description
The short summary under the title tag in Google search. It doesn’t directly impact search engine ranking, but it influences click-through rate.

H1 Tag
The main heading on a web page. Search engines use it to understand the primary topic of your SEO content.

H2 / H3 Tags
Subheadings that structure your content. They improve user experience and help search engines understand content hierarchy.

URL Slug
The part of a web page URL that comes after the domain name. It should be short and include your main SEO keyword.

Primary Keyword
The main keyword a page is optimized for in search engine optimization.

Long Tail Keyword
A longer, more specific search phrase with lower search volume but usually clearer search intent.

Search Intent
The reason behind a Google search. It tells search engines whether someone wants information, a product, or to take action.

Keyword Research
The process of finding keywords people type into Google search, often using tools like Google Trends or keyword research tools.

Search Volume
An estimate of how many times a keyword is searched in a given period.

Duplicate Content
When the same or very similar content appears on multiple web pages. Search engines may struggle to decide which page to rank.

Internal Link
A link from one page on your site to another page on the same site. It helps search engines crawl your content and improves user experience.

Outbound Link
A link from your web page to another website. It can provide context and improve content credibility.

Alt Text
A description added to an image that helps search engines understand what the image shows and improves accessibility.

Canonical URL
A tag that tells search engines which version of a page should be treated as the main one when duplicate content exists.

Bounce Rate
The percentage of users who leave a web page without interacting further. Often discussed in Google Analytics, though not a direct ranking factor.

Content Marketing
The strategy of creating valuable SEO content to attract traffic from search engines and social media.

AI Overview
A summary generated by Google search at the top of some search results, pulling information from multiple web pages.

Knowledge Graph
Google’s database of entities and relationships that helps generate rich search engine results beyond simple blue links.

Title Tag Optimization
The practice of writing a clear, keyword-focused title tag to improve visibility in search results.

User Experience (UX)
How easy and enjoyable it is for someone to use your web page. Good user experience supports better search engine ranking over time.

Off-Page SEO Jargon

Backlink
A link from another website pointing to your web page.

Referring Domain
A unique website that links to you (one site can give multiple backlinks).

Link Building
The process of getting backlinks from other sites to improve search engine ranking.

Brand Mention
When another site mentions your brand name, even without linking to you.

Unlinked Mention
A brand mention without a backlink.

Anchor Text
The clickable text of a backlink that gives search engines context about the linked page.

Exact Match Anchor Text
Anchor text that uses your exact target SEO keyword.

Partial Match Anchor Text
Anchor text that includes a variation of your keyword, usually more natural.

Branded Anchor Text
Anchor text that uses your brand name instead of a keyword.

Link Equity
The SEO value passed through a backlink from one web page to another.

PageRank
Google’s original link-based algorithm that measures authority through the web’s link network.

Link Velocity
How quickly a site gains backlinks over time.

Link Diversity
Having backlinks from many different sites, pages, and types of sources.

Editorial Link
A backlink given naturally because someone found your content useful.

Guest Post
A piece of content published on another website, often used to earn a backlink.

Digital PR
Earning backlinks and mentions through press coverage, news sites, or media outreach.

Listicle Placement
Getting featured in “best tools” or comparison posts that already rank in Google search.

Citation (Local SEO)
A mention of your business name, address, and phone number across directories.

Google Business Profile
Your official business listing that helps you appear in Google Maps and local search results.

Google My Business
The old name for Google Business Profile.

Online Reviews
Ratings and reviews on platforms like Google, G2, Yelp, or niche directories that influence trust and local visibility.

Social Signals
Engagement on social media: shares and likes. Not a direct ranking factor, but can amplify content and drive mentions.

Domain Authority
A third-party metric (not used directly by Google) that estimates domain strength based on backlinks.

Toxic Backlinks
Spammy backlinks that come from low-quality or manipulative sources.

Disavow File
A file submitted to Google to tell it to ignore certain backlinks.

Manual Penalty
A penalty applied when Google reviews a site and finds unnatural link building or other violations.

Black Hat SEO
SEO tactics that try to manipulate rankings through spam, link farms, or other methods against Google guidelines.

Technical SEO Jargon

Crawling
The process search engines use to discover web pages by following links across the internet.

Indexing
When a search engine stores and organizes a web page so it can appear in search results.

Google Search Console
A free tool from Google that shows how your site performs in Google search, including indexing issues and search engine result data.

Google Analytics
A tool that tracks user behavior on your web page, including traffic, bounce rate, and user experience metrics.

Core Web Vitals
A group of performance metrics that measure user experience, including loading speed and visual stability.

Page Speed
How fast a web page loads. Faster pages generally provide a better user experience and can help search engine ranking.

Structured Data
Code added to a web page that helps search engines understand the content more clearly, often used to trigger rich results.

Schema Markup
A type of structured data that labels elements like products, FAQs, and reviews so search engines can display enhanced search results.

Technical SEO
The behind-the-scenes optimization that ensures search engines can crawl, index, and understand your web page properly.

Robots.txt
A file that tells search engines which parts of your site they’re allowed to crawl.

Noindex Tag
A tag that tells search engines not to include a specific web page in search results.

Broken Link
A link that leads to a page that no longer exists, often returning a 404 error.

404 Error
A server response indicating that a web page cannot be found.

XML Sitemap
A file that lists important web pages on your site to help search engines discover and index them.

Mobile-First Indexing
Google’s approach of primarily using the mobile version of a web page for indexing and ranking.

HTTPS
A secure version of HTTP that encrypts data between the user and the website. It’s a basic trust and ranking factor.

Site Audit
A technical review of your website to identify issues affecting search engine optimization and user experience.

Search Engine Results Page (SERP)
The page shown by a search engine in response to a query, containing organic search results, ads, and SERP features.

SERP Feature
Enhanced elements on a search engine results page, such as featured snippets, knowledge graph panels, or AI Overview blocks.

Link Building Jargon

Outreach
Reaching out to website owners or editors to request a backlink or mention.

Cold Outreach
Outreach to someone you have no relationship with.

Prospecting
Finding websites that could realistically link to your content.

Link Prospect
A specific web page or site that could potentially link to you.

Pitch
The message you send during outreach to explain why someone should link to your content.

Follow-Up
A second (or third) outreach message sent when someone doesn’t reply.

Linkable Asset
A piece of content designed to attract backlinks, like a study, template, tool, or detailed guide.

Broken Link Building
A tactic where you find broken links on other websites and suggest your content as a replacement.

Skyscraper Technique
Creating a better version of a popular piece of content, then contacting sites that linked to the original.

Link Insert (Niche Edit)
Getting your link added into an existing article instead of publishing a new guest post.

Link Exchange
Two websites agreeing to link to each other.

Three-Way Link Exchange
A more “indirect” exchange where Site A links to Site B, and Site B links to Site C, etc.

PBN (Private Blog Network)
A network of websites built mainly to create backlinks, often considered black hat SEO.

Link Farm
A group of sites created solely to generate backlinks, usually low-quality and spammy.

Sponsored Link
A paid link placement, which should technically be labeled as sponsored.

UGC Link
A link labeled as user-generated content, usually found in comments or forums.

Nofollow Attribute
A tag that tells search engines not to pass full ranking value through a link.

Dofollow Link
A normal backlink that can pass ranking value (this is the default type of link).

Link Reclamation
Finding broken or lost backlinks and recovering them.

Competitor Backlink Analysis
Analyzing a competitor’s backlinks to find link opportunities you can replicate.

Link Gap
Backlinks your competitors have that you don’t.

Link Intersect
A method of finding sites that link to multiple competitors but not to you.

Anchor Text Ratio
The balance of branded, generic, and keyword-based anchor texts across your backlink profile.

Spam Score
A metric used by some SEO tools to estimate how risky or spammy a domain’s backlink profile looks.

Link Placement Quality
How valuable a link is based on where it appears, how relevant it is, and whether it’s likely to drive real traffic.

Contextual Link
A link placed inside the main content of a page, surrounded by relevant text.

Homepage Link
A backlink pointing to a site’s homepage instead of a specific article or landing page.

Deep Link
A backlink pointing to an internal page rather than the homepage.

Redirected Link
A backlink that points to a URL that redirects elsewhere, often through a 301 redirect.

Link building cheat sheet

Gain access to the 3-step strategy we use to earn over 86 high-quality backlinks each month.

Download for free

Now Over To You

Now that you’ve got this SEO glossary in your back pocket, the jargon shouldn’t slow you down anymore.

At the end of the day, search engine optimization isn’t about memorizing SEO terms. It’s about applying them. Optimizing your web page titles, improving user experience, fixing duplicate content, and building links that help search engines trust your site.

And that last part is where most people struggle.

You can have perfectly optimized content, clean technical SEO, and solid keyword research, but without strong link building, it’s hard to compete in Google search. That’s exactly where our done-for-you link building comes in.

We secure high-quality placements and backlinks that improve search engine ranking and help your web pages climb in search results without you having to manage outreach yourself.

If you’re serious about turning SEO terminology into real results, that’s the next step.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

What is SEO jargon?

SEO jargon is the collection of SEO terminology and SEO terms people use when talking about search engine optimization. Most of it refers to simple concepts like keywords, links, and how a search engine ranks a web page.

Why are there so many SEO terms?

Because SEO overlaps with content marketing, web development, analytics, and advertising. So you end up with a mix of terms from Google Analytics, Google Search Console, link building, and technical SEO all in one space.

What are the most important SEO terms to know?

If you only learn a few, focus on keyword research, search intent, title tag, meta description, structured data, duplicate content, and link building. Those cover the basics of how search engines evaluate and rank content.

Is Google Analytics an SEO tool?

Google Analytics isn’t a direct SEO tool, but it helps you measure user experience and behavior after someone lands on your web page. It’s useful for tracking bounce rate, conversions, and how organic traffic performs.

Do AI Overviews change SEO terminology?

Not really, but they add a few new terms like AI Overview and citation-based visibility. At the end of the day, AI still pulls from web pages that rank in search engines, so the core SEO jargon is still the same.