Active Members - A fully initiated member of a fraternity or sorority.

Alumna - a sorority member who is no longer a student. The plural is Alumnae.

Alumnus (plural: alumni) - A member of a fraternity who has graduated from college.

Badge - The member Badge is worn on the chest designating an  initiate of a fraternity. Badge design is structured to indicate if a member is an active or pledge of said fraternity.

Bid - An invitation to membership from a fraternity to a  rushee.

Blackball - During the process of determining which rushees shall receive bids, one brother or sister may veto the bid. This veto action is  called a "blackball."

Brother - A term used by initiated members in a fraternity  when referring to each other.

Chapter - The campus group of a national organization.  Within each organization, chapters are usually referenced via a Greek-letter  order. For example, the founding chapter would be the "Alpha Chapter," and the  second chapter is usually the "Beta Chapter."

Chapter Advisor - an alumnus who establishes and maintains a  close advisory relationship with a chapter and serves as a teacher, counselor and friend.

Colony - a student organization in the final stage prior to being installed as a chartered chapter of a Greek-letter organization.

Depledge - the termination of a pledge's relationship with a  Greek-letter organization.

Dry Rush - On many campuses, alcohol is forbidden from all events associated with introducing the fraternity/sorority to rushees.

Formal Rush - the 'official' rush period of the year with specific scheduled events. On many campuses, the most concentrated period with  Formal Rush for entertaining and selecting pledges is known as "Rush Week".

Fraternity - A group of individuals bound together by common  goals and rituals.

Fraternity - The name informally applied to a Greek-letter brotherhood.

Greeks- Students affiliated with Greek-letter fraternities and sororities.

Hazing- any willful act or practice by a member or associate member, directed against a member or associate member, which, with or without intent, is likely to: cause bodily harm or danger, offensive punishment, or disturbing pain, compromise the person's dignity; cause embarrassment or shame in public; cause the person to be the object of malicious amusement or ridicule;  cause psychological harm or substantial emotional strain; and impair academic  efforts. In addition, hazing is any requirement by a member or pledge which  compels a member or associate member to participate in any activity which is  illegal, is contrary to a member's or associate member's moral or religious beliefs, or is contrary to the rules and regulations of the fraternity, institution of learning, and civil authorities.

House - a chapter's physical facility which serves as its home.

Inactive Member - a brother or sister who has graduated. The  individual is still a member of the organization, but is denoted as "inactive" to designate that they have graduated and no longer participate in the day to  day activities of the fraternity or sorority.

Independent - A person who is not a member of a fraternity  or sorority.

Informal Rush - a continuous, open rush period with no  specific, scheduled, system-wide activities of rushing and pledging. Bids may be extended and accepted at any time.

Initiation- A formal ceremony by which new members become  initiated members.

Interfraternity Council (IFC) - The council made up of all  fraternities at a school.
Lavaliere - When a member of the fraternity gives a Greek letter charm which bears the Greek letters of his fraternity to a sorority woman.

Legacy (slang: Leg) - A rushee of a fraternity who is the son, brother, or other relative of a member of the fraternity.

Local Fraternity- "Local" - a Greek-letter group which exists on a campus but which has no affiliation with a national Greek  organization.

Panhellenic- The council of all National sororities at a  school..

Pinning (Pledge) - designates the start of a pledge process. The Pledge wears a fraternity/sorority Pledge Badge while pledging, and at the moment of pinning, officially becomes a pledge.

Pledge - A trial member (usually Freshmen undergraduates) of  a fraternity, who is working to become an initiate (active member) of the chosen fraternity.

Rush - The activity or activities by which a fraternity seeks new members.

Rushee - A person interested or who has expressed interest in becoming a member of a fraternity.

Sister - an initiated member of a sorority.

Sorority - an individual women's Greek-letter organization. This is the term commonly used to distinguish between men's (fraternities) and women's (sororities) organizations.