LEGO Collector Glossary: NISB, MISB, AFOL, MOC and More
LEGO collectors use a lot of shorthand. The most common terms describe condition (NISB means new in sealed box, MISB means mint in sealed box), the fans themselves (an AFOL is an adult fan of LEGO), and building (a MOC is "my own creation", a model you designed yourself). This glossary explains each term in a sentence or two, in alphabetical order, with an example where it helps.
Jump to a letter: A · B · C · D · E · G · L · M · N · P · R · S · T · U
- AFOL
An AFOL is an adult fan of LEGO: a grown-up who builds or collects LEGO for themselves. The word is used across the hobby, from fan conventions to LEGO's own marketing. Afolio's name comes from it: AFOL plus portfolio.
Example: "The display was built by a local group of AFOLs."
- Bley
Bley is short for "bluish grey", the light and dark grey colours LEGO switched to in 2003 and 2004, replacing its older, warmer greys across the range. Collectors call the old colours "old grey" or "old light grey". The two don't match, which matters when you're completing or rebuilding a set from the early 2000s.
Example: "This 2002 castle needs old grey, not bley."
- BL, BO and RB
BL, BO and RB are short for BrickLink, Brick Owl and Rebrickable, the main sites for buying parts and looking up sets and inventories. You'll see them in listings and forum posts.
Example: "Priced at BL six-month average."
- BNIB
BNIB stands for brand new in box, the same as NIB. It's general selling shorthand rather than a LEGO term, and like NIB it doesn't promise the box is still sealed.
- Bricks & Pieces
Bricks & Pieces was LEGO's online service for ordering individual pieces, separate from Pick a Brick. LEGO merged it into Pick a Brick in 2022, and the online Pick a Brick now sorts pieces into Bestseller and Standard. Some LEGO help pages still mention Bricks & Pieces by name. See missing pieces from a Pick a Brick order.
- BURP and LURP
A BURP is a big ugly rock piece and a LURP is a little ugly rock piece: large, single moulded rock and cliff pieces, common in 1990s and early 2000s sets. It's an older fan joke, but you'll still see it in parts listings and forums. Builders often dislike them because they replace what would otherwise be built from smaller bricks, but they're still needed to complete those sets.
- CMF
CMF stands for Collectible Minifigures: LEGO's series of minifigures sold one at a time in sealed, unmarked bags or boxes, so you don't know which figure you'll get. The first series came out in 2010, and there have been themed series too, such as two Harry Potter series.
Example: "I'm still missing two figures from the latest CMF series."
- Complete
On BrickLink, a complete set has every part for the main model (and any alternate models). The box and instructions don't count towards it, so a complete set can still be missing them. The opposite is incomplete.
- Dark Ages
The Dark Ages are the years when a LEGO fan stops building, usually in their teens, before coming back as an adult. Coming out of the Dark Ages is how many AFOLs describe getting back into LEGO.
- Design ID
A design ID is the number for a LEGO piece's shape, whatever its colour. It's often moulded in tiny numbers on the piece itself, and parts databases such as BrickLink and Rebrickable organise parts by it (they may call it the part number). For example, the classic 2 × 4 brick is design 3001.
- Element ID
An element ID is LEGO's number for one piece in one colour. A red 2 × 4 brick is element 300121; the same brick in black is 300126. Element IDs are listed at the back of most modern instruction booklets and used by LEGO for Pick a Brick and replacement pieces. A piece can have more than one element ID over the years.
- EOL
EOL stands for end of life (some say end of line): the point when LEGO stops making a set, or the last months before it does. Collectors watch for EOL because prices of some sets rise once they retire.
Example: "That set is going EOL this year, so buy it now if you want it at retail price."
- Greebling
Greebling is adding lots of small detail pieces to a surface so it looks complex and mechanical, especially on spaceships. The word comes from the model-makers who built spaceship miniatures for films such as Star Wars.
- GWP
GWP stands for gift with purchase: a small set or item LEGO gives away with qualifying orders for a limited time. Many GWPs are never sold on their own, which makes some of them collectable.
- LEGO Insiders
LEGO Insiders is LEGO's free loyalty programme, which gives points on purchases and access to some exclusive sets and rewards. It was called LEGO VIP until 2023, and many collectors still say VIP.
- LUG
A LUG is a LEGO user group: a local or online club of LEGO fans that meets, builds together and puts on displays. Many LUGs are part of LEGO's official network of recognised fan groups.
- Minifig
Minifig is short for minifigure, the small LEGO figure with moving arms, legs and head. Collectors identify minifigures by their exact version, because the same character is often made many times with different prints. See how to identify a set from its minifigures.
- MISB
MISB stands for mint in sealed box. Strictly it means the set is unopened and the box is in excellent condition, with no dents, creases or tears. In practice many sellers use it to mean just sealed, so check photos of the box before you pay a premium for it.
- MOC
A MOC is "my own creation": a model you've designed yourself rather than built from LEGO's instructions. Many MOC designers share or sell their instructions online.
Example: "This castle isn't an official set, it's a MOC."
- MOD
A MOD is an official LEGO set that a builder has modified, for example by adding an interior, changing colours or making it bigger. It sits between building the set as designed and a MOC.
- NIB
NIB stands for new in box: unbuilt and in its original box. It doesn't promise the box is still sealed, so ask the seller if that matters to you.
- NISB
NISB stands for new in sealed box: the set has never been opened and its factory seals are intact. It says nothing about the box's condition, which can still be dented or faded. For collectors and price guides, sealed and opened sets are valued separately, so NISB is one of the most important terms in a listing. See how much a LEGO set is worth.
Example: "NISB, but the box has a crushed corner."
- NPU
NPU stands for nice part use (or usage): using a piece in a clever way it wasn't designed for, such as a minifigure accessory as a building detail.
- Part out
To part out a set is to sell it piece by piece instead of as a whole. A set's part-out value is what all its pieces and minifigures would sell for separately, which is sometimes more than the complete set is worth. BrickLink shows a part-out value for most sets.
- Pick a Brick
Pick a Brick is LEGO's service for buying individual pieces. In LEGO Stores it's a wall of loose pieces you fill a cup from; online at LEGO.com you choose exact pieces and colours, which are picked by hand and shipped separately from other orders. See what to do if a Pick a Brick order arrives short.
- Polybag
A polybag is a small LEGO set sold in a sealed plastic bag instead of a box. Polybags are often promotional, given away with magazines or purchases, and some are hard to find later.
- Retired
A retired set is one LEGO no longer makes or sells. Once a set retires, the only way to buy it is second-hand or from sellers' remaining stock, so prices of popular retired sets often rise. See EOL.
- Sealed
A sealed set has never been opened: the box's seals, tape or glued flaps are unbroken. Sealed sets are valued separately from opened ones, even if an opened set is complete and unbuilt. In Afolio you record this as the box condition "Sealed".
- Set number
A set number is LEGO's number for a set, printed on the box and the front of the instructions, such as 75954 for Hogwarts Great Hall. Databases often add a version suffix, such as 75954-1, because a few numbers have been reused. The set number is the quickest way to identify a set; see how to identify a LEGO set.
- Sig-fig
A sig-fig, or signature figure, is a minifigure a builder uses to represent themselves, for example as an avatar on forums or in photos of their models.
- SNOT
SNOT stands for studs not on top: building techniques that turn pieces sideways or upside down, so studs face in other directions. It's how builders make smooth walls, angled details and shapes that normal stacking can't.
- Spare parts
Spare parts are the extra small pieces LEGO includes in many sets, such as an extra 1 × 1 round plate, because small pieces are easy to lose. They're listed separately in most parts lists, so you don't need them for a set to count as complete.
- TFOL
A TFOL is a teen fan of LEGO, the step before AFOL. You'll occasionally see KFOL for kid fans too, but it's much less common.
- UCS
UCS stands for Ultimate Collector Series: LEGO's large, detailed Star Wars display sets, aimed at adult collectors and often built to a larger scale than the regular sets.
- Used
On BrickLink and other marketplaces, a used set or part is anything that has been opened or built, even if it's complete and in perfect condition.
Where to go next
- Recording condition for a whole collection: how to catalogue a LEGO collection.
- Working out what a sealed or used set is worth: how much is a LEGO set worth?
- Finding the pieces a set is missing: how to find out which pieces are missing.
In Afolio, the collection app for iPhone, iPad and Mac, each copy of a set records its overall condition (new or used), the box's condition (from sealed to no box), the instructions, whether it's built and whether the stickers are applied, so the terms above map directly onto your records.
Try it yourself
Afolio tracks your LEGO collection on Mac, iPhone and iPad, with free iCloud sync between them. It's free for up to 25 sets, and Pro is a one-time upgrade with no subscription.
Prefer not to use the Mac App Store? Download the Mac version directly.
Home
·
Guides
·
Help
·
Pricing
© The Half Bakery Pty Ltd
LEGO is a trademark of the LEGO Group, which does not sponsor or endorse this app.