You've watched YouTube tutorials and usually just gone with the flow when you heard them use strange jargon—because you were too busy concentrating on their blending technique. Well, us too! But we've made an effort to decipher what all that absurd beauty jargon meant, so you didn't have to. Read on.
 

Lit

Lit

Not a term to ensure the room is well lit up, but rather one to describe that highlighter application that's so on fleek, the camera captured it in your selfies.

 

Bake

Bake

‘Bake your face’ might have a funny ring to it but it actually means to put some translucent powder on your face after your foundation and concealer, and to let your body heat melt it and make it blend into your skin.

 

MUA

MUA

You've probably pronounced it as muah in your head, but it actually stands for MakeupAlley, a website for beauty enthusiasts to discuss all things makeup. It is also short for Makeup Artist—like, I'm an MUA for Lakmé.

 

Hit Pan

Hit Pan

The sinking feeling when you scrape the last of your eyeshadow off the palette—that's hitting pan. What follows is saving up for the next one or feeling remorseful for not having picked an extra palette (if it's discontinued).

 

Frosty

Frosty

The colder sister of matte lipstick that slightly borders on iridescence. It has a shiny shimmery texture to make itself look icy. Ah, now we know Elsa’s go-to lipstick!

 

Bleed

Bleed

This is when your lipstick spreads outside your natural lip line, creating the illusion of a smudged lipstick. The trick to avoid this is to line your lips with a lip liner and/or conceal the outer corners of your lips with a concealer.

 

Dupes

Dupes

Dupes are the more affordable alternatives to the expensive originals available in the market. They serve the same purpose and provide similar results too. So, your ears had better pop when you next hear the word ‘dupe’!

 

Naked

Naked

Likely to be mistaken for nude makeup or going bare faced, but what naked actually means is the no-makeup makeup look—that takes quite some finesse to get right, despite looking like there's barely anything on.

 

FOTD

FOTD

Stands for Face of the Day. Yes, just like your outfits have moods—#OOTD and #OOTN—your makeup does too. Besides, the hashtag serves as a good excuse for makeup enthusiasts to flaunt their best faces.

 

Satin

Satin

If you're confused whether to pick a matte or a creamy finish—pick satin. It's neither too flat nor too shiny. This is what we’d call ‘understated glamour’.