Slack Integration

Integrate define.wtf with your Slack workspace to bring instant acronym lookup directly into your team's conversations. Once connected, team members can use the /define TERM slash command in any Slack channel or direct message.

Overview

The Slack integration provides:

/define TERM command — Instant lookup of any acronym in your define.wtf dictionary
Block Kit responses — Rich, formatted responses with definition text and author info
Seamless UX — No separate app account needed for Slack users; read-only access
Automatic tenant resolution — Commands are automatically scoped to your team's dictionary
Link to full definition — Every response includes a link to the full definition in define.wtf

What is `/define`?

The /define slash command is a read-only lookup tool. Team members can search your define.wtf dictionary without leaving Slack.

Example Usage

Workspace member in Slack:

/define OKR

Response from define.wtf bot:

OKR: Objectives and Key Results
A goal-setting framework where objectives are qualitative goals and key results are quantifiable measures of success.

Added by: Sarah Chen | Votes: 12

[View in define.wtf]

What `/define` Can't Do

Create or edit definitions (read-only)
Vote on definitions (voting happens in define.wtf only)
Access private or restricted definitions
Run bulk searches

Setup Instructions

Prerequisites

You are an admin or owner with tenant:manage_settings permission
Your Slack workspace allows app installations
You have workspace-level admin permissions in Slack

Step 1: Navigate to Slack Settings in define.wtf

Log in to define.wtf as an admin
Go to Settings → Slack
You should see a "Connect Workspace" button

If you already have a connected workspace, skip to Managing the Connection.

Step 2: Start the Connection

Click Connect Workspace

You'll see a message:

Redirecting to Slack for authorization...

Step 3: Authorize in Slack

A Slack authorization page will open (showing the define.wtf app requesting permissions)
Review the requested permissions (minimal scopes: read and write commands)
Click Allow to authorize define.wtf
You'll be redirected back to define.wtf with a success message

Step 4: Verify Connection

After authorization:

You should see your Slack workspace name and ID displayed
A "Connected" status indicator will appear
The /define command is now active in your Slack workspace

Step 5: Test the Connection

In Slack:

Open any channel or direct message
Type /define and the name of an acronym in your dictionary (e.g., /define OKR)
Press Enter
You should see a formatted response from the define.wtf bot

If /define doesn't appear in the slash command list:

Wait 30 seconds for Slack to sync the change
Type / to refresh the command list
If still missing, try disconnecting and reconnecting

Using `/define` in Slack

Basic Usage

/define TERM

Replace TERM with the acronym you want to look up (case-insensitive).

Response Format

The bot responds with a Block Kit message:

📖 TERM: Full Acronym Name
Definition text here explaining what the acronym means.

👤 Added by: Author Name | ⬆️ 12 votes

[View in define.wtf] [↓ Vote Down] [↑ Vote Up]

Response elements:

Definition title — The acronym and full name
Definition text — The description from the primary (most-voted) definition
Author — Who added this definition
Vote count — Number of upvotes for this definition
View link — Opens https://slug.define.wtf/acronym/TERM in your browser
Voting reactions — React with emoji to interact (though actual voting happens in define.wtf)

Not Found Response

If the term isn't in your dictionary:

No definition found for "NOTAWORD"

Want to add it? Head over to define.wtf and create a new entry!

[Go to define.wtf]

Search Behavior

The /define command:

Searches only your workspace's acronym dictionary (scoped by tenant)
Returns the primary definition (highest-voted definition for that term)
Is case-insensitive (e.g., /define okr, /define OKR, /define Okr all work)
Supports fuzzy matching for typos (e.g., /define OKP might suggest "OKR" as a did-you-mean)

Managing the Connection

View Connection Status

In Settings → Slack, you can see:

Connected Workspace — Your Slack workspace name
Workspace ID — Unique identifier for your Slack workspace (e.g., T12345ABC)
Connected Since — When the integration was first authorized
Last Used — When /define was last executed in Slack
Status — Connected or Disconnected

Disconnect Slack

To remove the Slack integration:

Go to Settings → Slack
Click Disconnect Workspace
Confirm the action with your password or SSO
The /define command will immediately stop working in Slack

After disconnection:

Team members attempting /define will see: "The /define command is not available in this workspace"
Your Slack workspace data is unaffected
You can reconnect later (the /define command will reappear)

Switch to a Different Slack Workspace

If you need to connect a different Slack workspace:

Disconnect the current workspace
Wait 30 seconds for Slack to sync the removal
Connect the new workspace following the setup steps

Note: define.wtf supports one Slack workspace per tenant. To connect multiple Slack workspaces to different define.wtf teams, you need separate define.wtf workspaces.

Update Slack Bot Permissions

The define.wtf Slack app only requests minimal permissions:

commands:write — Create and update slash commands
commands:read — Read command information

To review these permissions:

In Slack, go to Settings → Manage apps
Find define.wtf in your app list
Click it to view the full permission list
define.wtf cannot request additional permissions without another OAuth flow

If you want to grant additional permissions to define.wtf for future features, contact support@define.wtf.

Technical Details

Tenant Resolution

When Slack sends a /define command:

The request includes the Slack workspace ID (team_id)
define.wtf looks up which tenant is connected to this workspace ID
The search is automatically scoped to that tenant only
Results are returned in the correct workspace context

This allows one define.wtf app to serve many Slack workspaces, each with separate dictionaries.

OAuth Callback URL

The fixed OAuth callback URL for all define.wtf Slack integrations:

https://app.define.wtf/api/slack/oauth/callback

This URL is the same for all customers. Tenant identification happens via a signed state parameter in the OAuth flow, not through the hostname.

Request Verification

All incoming Slack requests (commands, events, callbacks) are verified using HMAC-SHA256 signature verification:

Slack includes an X-Slack-Request-Timestamp header (when the request was sent)
Slack includes an X-Slack-Signature header (an HMAC-SHA256 hash)
define.wtf verifies the signature matches the Slack signing secret
Only verified requests are processed; unverified requests are rejected

This ensures that only legitimate Slack requests (not forged requests) can trigger /define lookups.

App Configuration

The define.wtf Slack app is registered once and installed by many Slack workspaces. Per workspace:

slackBotToken — OAuth token for this workspace
slackWorkspaceId — Slack team ID
Both are stored securely in the define.wtf database

Security and Privacy

No User Data Collection

The /define command is read-only (no data written to Slack)
No Slack messages or channels are accessed
No Slack user data is read or exported by define.wtf

No Separate App Accounts

Slack users don't need a separate define.wtf account to use /define
Slack users are not authenticated to define.wtf
/define searches your public team dictionary (no user-level access control for read)

Audit Logging

All /define command usage is logged in your define.wtf audit trail:

When the command was executed
Which term was searched
Whether a result was found
This data supports compliance and analytics

Data Retention

Slack does not grant define.wtf access to your Slack workspace data
define.wtf only sends data to Slack (responses to /define commands)
No Slack messages or conversation history are accessed

Link Format

When a user clicks "View in define.wtf" in a /define response, they're directed to:

https://slug.define.wtf/acronym/TERM

Where:

slug is your workspace's URL slug (e.g., acme, engineering)
TERM is the acronym being looked up (e.g., OKR)
The URL is case-insensitive but the acronym is auto-uppercased for display

Example:

https://acme.define.wtf/acronym/OKR

Best Practices

Announce /define to your team — Many team members won't discover the command on their own; share it in #general or onboarding materials
Keep your dictionary updated — The more complete your acronym list, the more useful /define becomes
Link to define.wtf — In important conversations, share the full link to encourage team members to explore related acronyms
Gather feedback — Ask your team which acronyms they search for most; use this to prioritize what to define

Troubleshooting

"/define command not appearing in Slack"

Wait 1-2 minutes after connecting for Slack to register the command
Type / in a channel to refresh the command list
If still missing, try disconnecting and reconnecting

"Define.wtf bot not responding"

Check that the workspace is marked as "Connected" in define.wtf settings
Verify the term exists in your define.wtf dictionary
Try searching in define.wtf directly to confirm the term is there
Check your network connection

"Getting 'No definition found' for terms I know exist"

Verify the term is spelled correctly (search is case-insensitive but must match the term)
Try searching in define.wtf directly to confirm the term is indexed
Check that you're in the correct Slack workspace (if you have multiple)

"Need to connect a different Slack workspace"

Go to Settings → Slack and click "Disconnect Workspace"
Wait 30 seconds for Slack to sync the change
Click "Connect Workspace" and authorize the new workspace

"Getting 'workspace not found' after disconnecting and reconnecting"

Clear your browser cache
Try logging out and back into Slack
Refresh the Slack app (reload the web version or restart the desktop app)

"Slash command still appears after disconnecting"

Slack may take 1-2 minutes to remove the command
Try reloading Slack
If the command persists, try /uninstall_app (for your workspace only)

Advanced: Webhook Integration

The Slack integration is read-only and one-way (define.wtf → Slack). For more advanced automation, combine /define with webhooks:

Webhook listener — Receive real-time notifications when new acronyms are added
Custom Slack bot — Build a bot that posts summaries of new definitions to a #announcements channel
Activity dashboard — Send webhook data to a dashboard tool to track which terms are most active

See: Webhooks & Automations

Support

If you encounter issues:

Check the Troubleshooting section above
Verify the connection status in Settings → Slack
Review your audit logs for errors
Contact support@define.wtf with:
- Your workspace name
- Steps to reproduce the issue
- Any error messages you see

Slack Integration Guide