The Sims 4 Glossary

Game Basics & Interface

Term	Short definition
Sim	A character in The Sims 4.
Household	A group of Sims managed together.
Lot	A playable or buildable property.
World	A location containing neighbourhoods and lots.
Neighbourhood	An area containing several lots.
CAS	Create-a-Sim: create or edit Sims.
Build/Buy	Mode for building and furnishing lots.
Live Mode	Mode in which Sims live and act.
Gallery	EA's platform for sharing Sims, lots and rooms.
Save	A stored game state and its households, worlds and lots.
Simoleon	The in-game currency.
Manage Worlds	Screen for managing worlds, households and lots.
Simology	The panel showing a Sim's age, traits, skills and relationships.
Create a Sim (CAS)	The editor for creating and changing a Sim.
Build Mode	Mode for constructing and changing a lot.
Buy Mode	Mode for furnishing a lot with objects.
World Map	Map used to travel between worlds and lots.
Lot Type	The function assigned to a lot, such as Residential or Library.
Venue	A lot designed for a particular public activity.
Residential	A lot where a household can live.
Apartment	A residential unit inside an apartment building.
Rental	A property rented for a temporary or vacation stay.
Household Inventory	Objects shared by the household.
Personal Inventory	Objects carried by an individual Sim.
NPC	A character controlled by the game rather than the player.
Townie	A Sim who exists in the world but is not currently played.
Occult	A supernatural Sim type, such as vampire or spellcaster.
Life State	The current supernatural or ordinary state of a Sim.

Packs & Content

Term	Short definition
Pack	Official additional content for the game.
Expansion Pack	A large pack with major gameplay and world content.
Game Pack	A themed pack focused on a particular experience.
Stuff Pack	A smaller pack focused mainly on objects and clothing.
Kit	A small themed collection of items or clothing.
DLC	Downloadable content added to the base game.
Base Game	The main game without additional packs.

Gameplay Systems

Term	Short definition
Trait	A marker describing a Sim's personality or state.
Preference	A like, dislike or attraction setting.
Buff	An active temporary or situational state.
Moodlet	A visible buff shown in the user interface.
Mood	A Sim's current emotional state.
Skill	A level-based ability that Sims can develop.
Career	A structured job progression with levels and rewards.
Aspiration	A long-term goal system with milestones and rewards.
Relationship Bit	A marker stored on a relationship between Sims.
Object State	A configured state such as clean, dirty, open or closed.
Autonomy	The system that chooses actions for Sims.
Situation	A system coordinating Sims, roles and goals for an event.
Picker	A dialog for selecting Sims, objects or options.
Need	A basic requirement such as Hunger, Energy or Fun.
Motive	The internal value behind a Sim's need.
Emotion	The emotional state that influences available actions.
Sentiment	A lasting feeling one Sim holds about another.
Milestone	A goal or achievement tracked within a life stage or system.
Want	A short-term goal a Sim may want to complete.
Scenario	A guided challenge with objectives and possible outcomes.
Event	A time-limited activity with participants and goals.
Holiday	A calendar day with traditions and possible rewards.
Calendar	The schedule for holidays, events, work and appointments.
Club	A group with members, activities and club rules.
Fame	A progress system measuring a Sim's public recognition.
Reputation	A system describing how a Sim is regarded by others.
Lifestyle	A long-term behaviour pattern that can affect a Sim.
Career Branch	A specialisation chosen during career progression.
Promotion	Advancement to the next level of a career.
Gig	A temporary assignment with its own deadline and payment.
Collection	A group of collectable items tracked by the game.
Ghost	A Sim who has died and can remain in the world.
Satisfaction Points	Points spent in the Rewards Store.

Mods & Troubleshooting

Term	Short definition
Mod	Player-created content that changes or adds features.
Custom Content (CC)	Player-created visual content such as hair or furniture.
Gameplay Mod	A mod that changes gameplay systems or behaviour.
Script Mod	A mod containing Python code.
UI Mod	A mod that changes the user interface.
Override	A replacement for an existing game resource.
Default Replacement	CC that replaces an original visual asset.
Mod Conflict	Two files affect the same resource incompatibly.
Patch	An official update that may break or require updated mods.
Mods Folder	The user folder where Sims 4 mods and CC are installed.
Resource.cfg	A configuration file that tells the game how to read mod folders.
localthumbcache.package	A cache file commonly deleted after changing mods.
LastException	A log file containing a reported game or mod exception.
LastUIException	A log file focused on user-interface exceptions.
50/50 Method	A test method that isolates a broken or conflicting file.
Dependency	A required mod or library that another mod needs.
Compatibility	Whether a mod works with a particular game patch.

Modding

Term	Short definition
Tuning	Structured data that configures game systems.
XML	A readable format used to inspect tuning.
SimData	Companion binary data for certain tuning resources.
Interaction	An executable action offered to a Sim or player.
Super Interaction	A main top-level interaction type.
Mixer	An interaction running within another interaction context.
Affordance	An interaction offered or referenced by another system.
Loot	Logic that performs one or more gameplay changes.
Outcome	A result branch with its consequences.
Test	A condition returning pass or fail.
Test Set	Several tests combined with AND/OR logic.
Participant	The Sim, object or entity used by an action.
Resolver	Runtime context that supplies participants.
Snippet	A reusable tuning resource.
Liability	Runtime behaviour attached to an interaction.
String Table (STBL)	A resource containing localized text.
String Key	An identifier used to reference localized text.
Instance	The numeric identifier of a package resource.
Resource Key	Type, Group and Instance together identify a resource.
FNV32 / FNV64	Hash formats used to generate resource identifiers.
Package	A file format used to store Sims 4 resources.
Resource	A single piece of data stored in a package file.
Injection	Adding custom data or behaviour to an existing game system.
Core Library	A shared library that provides functions for other mods.
XML Injector	A library that lets mods add interactions through XML tuning.
Hash	A numeric value generated from a resource name or identifier.