Asset

Anything you own that is expected to hold or produce value - a share, a bond, a property, a business.

Example

A rental apartment is an asset; the mortgage on it is a liability.

An asset's value is what someone else will actually pay for it, not what you paid for it or hope it is worth.

Investing — Committing money today with the expectation of more money later, in exchange for taking on risk and giving up the ability to spend that money now.
Capital — Money set aside to be put to work, as opposed to money earmarked for near-term spending.
Return — The gain or loss on an investment, usually expressed as a percentage of what was put in.

Most alternative assets pay you nothing until the day you sell — Art, wine, watches and domains produce no income at all while you hold them - the return exists only as a price someone else agrees to pay later. A small minority of alternatives, like farmland and royalty rights, are genuinely different because they generate cash along the way. (9 min)
For most people, their future earnings are the largest asset they own — Human capital - the value of your ability to earn - is usually worth far more than a young person's savings. Education, skills and health are ways of investing in it, with real costs and uncertain returns. (9 min)
What investing actually is — Investing is putting money at risk today in exchange for more of it later. Everything else in this Academy is detail on top of that one trade. (9 min)