A wallet is the most basic piece of tool required to send, receive or store cryptocurrencies.
Each wallet has a public address and a private key ( just like the bank locker has 2 keys - one keep with the bank and one with the customer)
If you have your cryptocurrencies on a centralized exchange, the private key is with the exchange itself and you can't access it.
When you use a secure wallet instead ( could be hardware wallet, software wallet or web wallets) and open your account it generates a private key ( there are various formats in which you can store this - the easiest being a 12 word seed). This private key should ideally be written on a piece of paper and kept securely ( and not sorted in electronic format because that can be stopped or hacked). As long as you are in control of the private keys if your wallet your funds are safe. If you leave your cryptocurrencies on centralized exchanges where you don't control your private keys, your funds are vulnerable to hacking.
So use a secure wallet like PINT to store your funds securely. It's a very simple, easy to use, intuitive and secure wallet. ( Link below). Check it out