Glossary
Knowledge is power.

Breaking Down Common Medical Cannabis Terminology
Cannabis is a complicated plant, and there are a number of terms that may not look familiar to those newer to cannabis treatment.
Industry Terms
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2-AG (2-arachidonoylglycerol): an endocannabinoid abundant within the central nervous system.
7-hydroxy-CBD: the metabolite produced by liver metabolism of CBD.
11-hydroxy-THC: the metabolite produced by liver metabolism of THC that has 2-4 times more psychoactivity potency relative to THC.
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Anandamide: an endogenous cannabinoid that regulates feeding and suckling behavior, along with baseline pain levels and sleep patterns.
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Beta-Caryophyllene: terpene responsible for anti-inflammatory effects; it is also the only terpene known to also act as a cannabinoid.
Bioavailability: the portion of cannabis dose that can be absorbed.
Blood/Brain Barrier: a barrier consisting of cells that prevent bacteria and large or water-loving molecules from crossing into the central nervous system.
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Cannabichromene (CBC): anti-inflammatory cannabinoid.
Cannabidiol (CBD): non-psychoactive cannabinoid, the second most common cannabinoid produced by the cannabis plant.
Cannabidiolic Acid (CBDA): the acidic form of CBD that is naturally produced by the plant; once activated, CBDA converts to CBD.
Cannabidivarin (CBDVA): CBDV is the propyl variant of CBD.
Cannabigerol (CBG): non-psychoactive cannabinoid that serves as the precursor used by the plant's enzymes to produce THC and CBD.
Cannabinoids: compounds that activate the cannabinoid receptors, including endocannabinoids produced by humans and animals, phytocannabinoids produced by cannabis and a few other plants, and synthetic cannabinoids.
Cannabinol (CBN): the weakly psychoactive breakdown product of THC; not produced by the cannabis plant.
Cannabis Hyperemesis Syndrome: an uncommon condition affecting a small population of cannabis users characterized by nausea, vomiting, and abdominal pain that can be alleviated by abstinence from cannabis.
CB1 Receptor: cannabinoid receptor primarily located in the central nervous system that is activated by cannabinoids.
CB2 Receptor: a cannabinoid receptor that is expressed in the peripheral tissues of the immune system, the gastrointestinal system, the peripheral nervous system, and to a lesser degree in the central nervous system.
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Endocannabinoid System: a system of neuromodulator chemicals and their receptors throughout the body involved in the regulation of appetite, pain, mood, and memory.
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Farnesene: terpene known for promoting head clarity and focus.
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Humulene: terpene known for providing hunger suppression.
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Limonene: terpene known for providing anxiety and stress relief.
Linalool: terpene is known for promoting relaxation and calming effects.
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Microdosing: a technique for employing the minimum effective dose of cannabis medicine that delivers the desired outcome or level of effect.
Myrcene: terpene known for promoting calming effects.
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Ocimene: terpene known for uplifting effects and anti-inflammatory properties.
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Phytocannabinoid: term for the cannabinoids produced by the cannabis plant and a few other plant species.
Pinene: terpene known for promoting alertness while counteracting some effects of THC.
Plant Growth Regulators (PGR): synthetic plant hormones regulate plant growth, some of which may be harmful to humans.
Psychoactivity: the measure of how cannabis and other drugs affect the mind, mood, or other mental states.
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Receptor Downregulation: the decrease in the number of receptors available to a cannabinoid molecule, which reduces the sensitivity to cannabinoid effects and underlies the buildup of tolerance.
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Sublingual: taken and absorbed beneath the tongue.
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Terpenes: volatile hydrocarbons found in the essential oils produced by many plants, including cannabis; cannabis terpenes provide unique medical benefits that give a strain its "personality."
Terpinolene: terpene known for providing uplifting effects in addition to antibacterial and antifungal properties.
Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) or delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol: the principal cannabinoid of the cannabis plant, responsible for much of cannabis' psychoactivity.
General Medical Cannabis Terms
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Agitation: the process of breaking off and harvesting trichomes from the cannabis flower through physical contact.
Alcohol Extraction: the process of stripping the essential oils and trichomes from the cannabis plant by using either ethyl or isopropyl alcohol (i.e. tinctures).
Auto-Buddering: the process of shatter or taffy changing consistency into a budder form.
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Blasting: the process of creating hash oil by passing a solvent (butane, propane, CO2) through plant material.
Bud(s): synonym for the flower of the mature cannabis plants.
Budder: a cannabis concentrate that is similar to wax but softer and more pliable.
Butane Hash Oil (BHO): cannabis flowers are blasted with butane; the resulting product is a viscous resin known as "wax" or "shatter" and is very potent.
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Cannabinoids: the chemical compounds found in the cannabis plant that offers a variety of health benefits; THC & CBD are the most common. Learn more about cannabinoids.
Cannabis: a genus of flowering plants that includes Cannabis ruderalis, Cannabis sativa, and Cannabis indica.
Chemotype: a term of a plant type - including cannabis - that produces a distinct combination of chemical compounds.
Clone: a marijuana plant clipping that can be planted and grown, creating a genetic copy of the mother.
CO2 Extraction: the process of pressurizing liquid or gas CO2 to its "Super Critical" state; the waxes, oils and cannabinoids will be stripped away without damage or denaturing, creating a similar product to BHO but less viscous and more oily.
Cola: the top flower cluster of a female cannabis plant.
Combustion: the process of burning cannabis material; combustion occurs when smoking flower. *Smoking or combustion of cannabis products is strictly prohibited in the OMMCP.*
Concentrates: any type of cannabis product that is refined from flowers into a more purified and potent form; can include to any form of hash (pressed hash or water hash), kief, or hash oil (CO2, BHO, shatter, budder, wax, etc.).
Cross (short for Crossbreeding): when multiple cannabis plants are bred to produce a new strain; the new crossbred strain will have traits from both parent plants.
Cultivar: a plant variety produced in cultivation through select breeding.
Cure: the process of aging dried cannabis flower in order to expose and balance the medicinal compounds of the flower; increases potency and develops the flavor/aroma.
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Edibles: cannabis-infused products that are consumed orally; edibles are digested versus inhaled, which metabolizes
THC differently often resulting in more intense and elongated effects.
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Dabber: a long tool (similar to dental equipment) used to touch the concentrate to the vaporizer; it is typically made out of metal or glass and helps the user consume product without making a mess or risk getting hurt.
Dabbing: a common term used when referring to the process of medicating with concentrates.
Dab: a term that refers to a smaller quantity of concentrate; also can be considered a "single dose."
Decarboxylate: the process of heating cannabis at a low temperature to transform "inactive" acid cannabinoids like THCA and CBDA into "active" THC and CBD; decarboxylated, or "activated," products can be eaten (i.e. edibles & consumables).
Dewaxing: the process of removing waxes and lipid fats from concentrates to create a purer, more stable product (typically for shatter).
Dry Sift (Dry Sieve Hash): extraction method that splits trichomes from the cannabis plant, most typically with a mesh screen.
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FECO: Full Extract Cannabis Oil is a highly concentrated, whole-plant extract that is known to provide one of the broadest spectrums of terpenes and cannabinoids available.
Flowers: refer to the hairy, often sticky bud or parts of the plant that are harvested and used to consume in a variety of cannabis products.
Fresh Frozen: plant matter that has been cryogenically frozen immediately after harvest, preserving terpenes and the other phytochemical properties of the living plant.
Full Melt: a concentrate (hash) that bubbles and melts at the slightest application of heat.
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Genotype: specific characteristics of a plant, the expression of which is controlled by genes.
Grinder: a circular metal, steel or wood device used to breakdown cannabis.
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Hash/Hash Oil: the gathering of trichomes via a dry sieve or water extraction method, which end product can be pressed and consumed; this powder is potent and contains high levels of cannabinoids.
HCFSE: short for high-cannabinoid full spectrum extract; created through hydrocarbon extraction with an emphasis on cannabinoid preservation.
Hemp: comes from Cannabis sativa - the same plant as cannabis - but only contains a small amount of THC (less than 0.3%); hemp is now federally legal.
HTFSE: short for high-terpene full spectrum extract; created through hydrocarbon extraction with an emphasis on terpene preservation.
Hybrid: one of the three classifications of cannabis; is a cross between two genetically different strains of cannabis; can be 50/50, Sativa-dominant, or Indica-dominant.
Hydrocarbon Extraction: extraction methods that typically utilize hydrocarbons like butane, propane, pentane or hexane.
Hydroponics: popular growing method that circulates water and nutrients to plant roots which allows one to have more control over the grow process.
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Ice Wax: an extremely fine hash, known for being extracted through water; it differs from normal hash due to its cooling process that utilizes ice and "fresh-frozen" material.
Indica: one of the three classifications of cannabis; plants are typically shorter and bushier plants with wide leaves compared to Sativa; generally effects are on the body and produce sedated feelings, preferred for nighttime use.
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Jelly Hash: a potent mixture of bubble hash/water hash and hash oil; it is made by mixing hash oil with water hash under heat and is known for its jelly-like consistency.
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Kief: the result of separating trichomes from the cannabis plant; holds the most amounts of cannabinoids, making it potent and a very pure form of concentrate.
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Live Resin: fresh-frozen plants are typically used in BHO extractions.
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Marijuana: we prefer the term cannabis due to marijuana's history of racial abuse; marijuana is the broad word for the cannabis plant and its flower (and resulting products).
Micron Grade: refers to the micron bag used to collect trichomes during bubble hash production; different sized micron bags (i.e. 70u, 90u, 120u) allow different sized trichome heads to collect.
Mother Plant: a cannabis plant kept in a vegetative state (not allowed to flower) so that clones may be taken to produce more plants identical to the mother.
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Nug-run: a term that describes a processed cannabis product that was extracted using cannabis nugs rather than trim.
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Oil: shortened term for hash oil; a form of cannabis extract that can be vaporized or infused.
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Phenotype: a term used to successfully identify a plant's inherent traits; growers can make a specific strain based on those preferred characteristics.
Pheno-hunt: the process of a cultivator growing a number of phenotypes of a particular strain to identify the cultivar to keep and continue growing.
PPM: parts per million, the standard measurement of residual solvents, as well as other contaminants such as mold and pesticides.
Pressed Hash: made from compressed resin glands (trichomes) after the initial extraction period.
Purging: the process of removing residual solvent from a concentrate.
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Reclaim: residual concentrate that is collected after dabbing.
Residual Solvent: any remaining solvent contained within a concentrate post-extraction and purging.
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Sativa: one of the three classifications of cannabis; plants are typically tall and thin plants with narrow leaves, and is generally a lighter shade of green compared to the Indica plant; general effects are on the head and produce stimulating feelings, preferred for daytime use.
Sauce: sometimes called "Terp Sauce," refers to a runny, terpene-rich concentrate; sometimes labelled HTSFE or high-terpene full-spectrum extract.
Shatter: a type of concentrate that is created through an extraction process that eliminates fats and lipids; typically transparent and easily breaks into fragments.
Solvent: a liquid in which something is dissolved to form a solution; in extraction, solvents are used to separate the phytochemical properties from the cannabis flower.
Solvent-Free: a term used to describe a hydrocarbon extraction that has been fully cleansed of all residual solvent; Solvent-free has 0 ppm residual solvent, but was still originally a solvent-based extraction.
Strain: also known as a cultivar, is a particular kind of cannabis plant that is isolated to increase certain traits of the plant and named to reflect the complexity of the plant's specific and unique characteristics.
Sugaring: a shift in the consistency of cannabis concentrates that have not been dewaxed; exposure to heat, light and air can cause spontaneous nucleation of cannabinoids, subsequently purging some terpenes, lipids and waxes.
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Terpene: the chemical compounds found in cannabis that produce the distinct flavor and smell of the flower; terpenes are accountable for the hundreds of variances between strains including flavor and smell. Terpenes are so sensitive to low temperatures, it is imperative to keep cannabis in cooler settings.*
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Vape Pen: a vaporizer pen is a smaller, often portable version of a regular vaporizer; some vape pens have chambers for product while others use pre-filled cartridges.
Vaporization: a process in cannabis consumption that uses moderate heat to chemically change a solid-form concentrate into an inhalable vapor; all concentrates and flower in Ohio must be vaporized.
Vaporizer: a device that is designed to heat cannabis like an oven; vaporizers will heat flower or oils to a very specific temperature that activates the cannabinoids and terpenes and turns them into vapor to be inhaled; many believe that vaporizing is healthier than smoking.
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Water Hash: also known as Ice Water Hash or Bubble Hash, is a specific technique to separate trichomes to isolate the resin; ice water separation is a cleaner method that doesn't involve other solvents and allows for a more refined hash.
Wax: concentrated form of cannabis that is created when the plant is dissolved into a solvent; considered to be a lot more potent than flower.
Waxes & Lipids: natural occurring substances found within the cannabis plant; waxes and lipids are often removed during dewaxing.
Whole Plant: usually extracted as fresh frozen to extract all the "live" terpenes and cannabinoids.
Winterization: a more thorough form of dewaxing that uses a secondary solvent (typically ethanol) to help purge wax and lipid materials; ideal for longer preservation, but at the loss of flavor and full-spectrum effect.