n8n Glossary: Key Terms for Beginners
Plain-English definitions of the words you'll meet everywhere in n8n — node, workflow, trigger, execution, credential, expression, and more.
n8n has its own vocabulary, and a few terms unlock most of it. Here's each one in plain English, with why it matters when you're building your first automation.
The Building Blocks
| Término | Qué significa | Por qué importa |
|---|---|---|
| Workflow | One automation: a chain of steps that moves and transforms data, drawn on a visual canvas. | The workflow is the thing you build and run in n8n. |
| Node | A single step in a workflow — an app action, a piece of logic, or a data transform. | You build a workflow by connecting nodes; each does one job. |
| Trigger | The node that starts a workflow — a webhook, a schedule, a form submission, a new email. | Every workflow needs a trigger to know when to run. |
| Execution | One run of a workflow, with the data that flowed through it. You can inspect each execution. | n8n's pricing and debugging are based on executions. |
| Connection | The line linking one node's output to the next node's input. | Connections define the order data flows through the workflow. |
Working With Data and Apps
| Término | Qué significa | Por qué importa |
|---|---|---|
| Credential | Saved login/API keys for a service (Slack, Google, etc.), stored once and reused. | Set a credential once and every node for that app can use it securely. |
| Expression | A small snippet (in {{ }}) that pulls a value from earlier in the workflow, e.g. {{ $json.email }}. | Expressions are how you pass data from one node into the next. |
| Code node | A node where you write real JavaScript or Python when the built-in nodes aren't enough. | Your escape hatch when no-code can't do exactly what you need. |
| Webhook | A URL that other apps call to trigger your workflow with data. | The most common way to start a workflow from an outside event. |
| Integration | A ready-made set of nodes for a specific app (400+ available). | Lets you connect apps without writing glue code for each one. |
Conviene saber
| Término | Qué significa | Por qué importa |
|---|---|---|
| Autoalojamiento | Running n8n on your own server (the free, open-source Community Edition). | Full control of your data, with no per-execution cloud billing. |
| AI agent node | A LangChain-based node that lets a workflow reason and choose tools, not just follow fixed steps. | How n8n builds actual AI agents you can watch step by step. |
That's the core vocabulary. Ready to build? See the full n8n overview, or follow our step-by-step guide to your first workflow.