Technical Analysis & Chart Patterns — 65 Terms Defined

Ascending Triangle Technical Analysis & Chart Patterns qualitative A formation with a flat upper boundary and a rising lower boundary, so the range narrows upward toward a point. Test: two or more highs at approximately the same level, with successively higher lows converging on them

Bar Chart Technical Analysis & Chart Patterns qualitative A chart showing each period as a vertical line spanning high to low, with left and right ticks marking the open and close. Test: each period is one vertical line from Low to High, with the open marked left and the close marked right

Bearish Engulfing Technical Analysis & Chart Patterns qualitative A two-candle formation in which a falling candle's body completely covers the preceding rising candle's body. Test: previous Close > previous Open; current Open >= previous Close and current Close <= previous Open

Breakdown Technical Analysis & Chart Patterns qualitative A move of price below a defined support level or the lower boundary of a range. Test: price closes below the defined level, conventionally by a stated margin or on above-average volume

Breakout Technical Analysis & Chart Patterns qualitative A move of price above a defined resistance level or the upper boundary of a range. Test: price closes above the defined level, conventionally by a stated margin or on above-average volume

Broadening Formation Technical Analysis & Chart Patterns qualitative A pattern of successively higher highs and lower lows, so the range widens over time. Test: each swing high exceeds the previous high and each swing low falls below the previous low

Bullish Engulfing Technical Analysis & Chart Patterns qualitative A two-candle formation in which a rising candle's body completely covers the preceding falling candle's body. Test: previous Close < previous Open; current Open <= previous Close and current Close >= previous Open

Candlestick Technical Analysis & Chart Patterns qualitative A chart element showing a period's open, high, low and close as a body between open and close with wicks to the extremes. Body = distance between Open and Close; Upper Wick = High - max(Open, Close); Lower Wick = min(Open, Close) - Low

Channel Technical Analysis & Chart Patterns qualitative A pair of parallel trendlines enclosing price movement, one along the swing highs and one along the swing lows. Test: an upper and a lower line of equal slope contain the price series over the period examined

Chart Timeframe Technical Analysis & Chart Patterns qualitative The period each bar or candle on a chart represents, from one minute to one month. Test: the timeframe states the duration aggregated into a single plotted period

Consolidation Technical Analysis & Chart Patterns qualitative A period in which price moves within a bounded range without establishing a directional sequence. Test: successive highs and lows fall within a defined band, with neither the higher-high nor lower-low condition satisfied

Cup and Handle Technical Analysis & Chart Patterns qualitative A rounded base followed by a smaller, shallower pullback near the prior high, resembling a cup with a handle. Test: a rounded recovery to near the prior high, then a shallow consolidation typically retracing less than a third of the cup's depth

Dark Cloud Cover Technical Analysis & Chart Patterns qualitative A two-candle formation in which a falling candle opens above the prior rising candle's close and closes below its midpoint. Test: previous candle rises; current Open > previous High; current Close < midpoint of previous body but above its Open

Descending Triangle Technical Analysis & Chart Patterns qualitative A formation with a flat lower boundary and a falling upper boundary, so the range narrows downward toward a point. Test: two or more lows at approximately the same level, with successively lower highs converging on them

Doji Technical Analysis & Chart Patterns qualitative A candlestick whose open and close are at or very near the same price, producing almost no body. Test: absolute value of (Close - Open) is a very small fraction of the period's High minus Low, conventionally under 5%

Double Bottom Technical Analysis & Chart Patterns qualitative Two troughs at approximately the same price separated by a peak, forming a W shape on the chart. Test: two lows within a small percentage of each other, separated by a rally to an intervening high that is later exceeded

Double Top Technical Analysis & Chart Patterns qualitative Two peaks at approximately the same price separated by a trough, forming an M shape on the chart. Test: two highs within a small percentage of each other, separated by a decline to an intervening low that is later breached

Dow Theory Technical Analysis & Chart Patterns qualitative An early framework holding that markets move in primary, secondary and minor trends, and that indices must confirm one another. Test: a primary trend is established when successive peaks and troughs move in one direction and a second related index confirms the same direction

Downtrend Technical Analysis & Chart Patterns qualitative A price sequence in which each significant high is below the previous high and each significant low is below the previous low. Test: current swing high < previous swing high, and current swing low < previous swing low

Elliott Wave Theory Technical Analysis & Chart Patterns qualitative A framework proposing that price moves in repeating sequences of five waves in the direction of the trend and three against it. Structure: impulse waves 1-2-3-4-5 in the trend direction, followed by corrective waves A-B-C, with each wave subdividing into the same structure

Evening Star Technical Analysis & Chart Patterns qualitative A three-candle formation of a large rising candle, a small-bodied candle, then a large falling candle closing well into the first body. Test: candle 1 rises strongly; candle 2 has a small body above it; candle 3 falls and closes below the midpoint of candle 1's body

Falling Wedge Technical Analysis & Chart Patterns qualitative A formation in which both boundaries slope downward but converge, with the upper boundary falling more steeply than the lower. Test: lower highs and lower lows, with the line through the highs falling faster than the line through the lows

False Breakout Technical Analysis & Chart Patterns qualitative A move beyond a defined level that reverses back into the prior range shortly afterwards. Test: price breaches the level and then closes back inside the range within a stated number of periods

Fibonacci Extension Technical Analysis & Chart Patterns % Levels projected beyond a prior move at set multiples of its size, used to mark possible areas where an advance may pause. Extension Level = Retracement Low + (High - Low) x Ratio, where common ratios are 127.2%, 161.8%, 200% and 261.8%