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A "rave" is a type of "underground party," or a secret party that few people know about unless they are invited. Raves aren't held at regular "dance clubs" (businesses where people go to dance and drink), but instead might be at an "abandoned" (empty; no longer used) "warehouse" (a large building used to store goods for later sale) or in an old barn. Raves are usually held in large cities and are almost always for young people in their 20s. "Anywhere from" (within the range of) a few "dozen" (a group of twelve) to thousands of people might go to a rave. "At a minimum" (at least), a rave is an all-night party, but some raves last for several days.

At a rave, people listen and dance to loud, "electronic music" (music created with synthesizers and computers) played by "live" (real and in real-time; not recorded earlier) "DJs" (disc jockeys; people whose job is to choose which songs to play at a party or on a radio station, sometimes speaking between songs). The dancers dance in a "free-form" (without set movements; doing whatever feels right) style. There are also usually many "psychedelic" (with bright, strange colors like those that were popular in the 1960s) lights in an otherwise dark room.

The people who went to raves in the 1980s and early 1990s believed in PLUR: peace, love, unity, and respect, and tried to "instill" (teach and share ideas) those "values" (beliefs about how one should live) at the parties. Today, however, many raves have moved away from those values. Today, many - but not all - raves are "characterized by" (commonly described as; with certain things in common) drug use and "casual sex" (having sex with people whom one doesn't know well, without any expectation of a long-term, romantic relationship).