In crypto slang, a spoon is a new blockchain that begins life with a copy of some or all of another chain's state, usually its account balances, taken at a set snapshot. Unlike a fork, where two chains share a common history up to the point they split, a spoon starts a fresh chain with its own genesis block and may run entirely different software. The copied balances are typically used to hand the new coin to existing holders, in effect a large airdrop that gives the new network a ready-made community. The word is a play on "fork" and is used informally and inconsistently, so the exact meaning depends on who is using it. Also see hard fork.