The 100 most important trading terms

Alphabetically sorted list of the 100 most important trading terms (related to MetaTrader MT4/MT5, CFDs, Expert Advisors, indicators, charts, templates, order types, stops, trailing, breakeven, pips/points, spread, slippage, swap, etc.) with brief explanations:

1. Arbitrage
   Exploiting price differences of the same underlying across different markets or contracts to lock in risk-free profit.
2. Ask Price
   The price at which the market (broker) is willing to sell — traders buy at the ask.
3. Order Size (Position Size)
   The volume of an order; in forex often in lots, in CFDs in contract units.
4. Order Book
   Overview of all open limit and stop orders within a market segment.
5. Execution Type
   Type of order execution, e.g., “Instant Execution” or “Market Execution.”
6. Average True Range (ATR)
   Volatility indicator measuring the average price range over a period.
7. Backtesting
   Testing a trading strategy on historical data in the Strategy Tester.
8. Base Currency
   The first currency in a pair (e.g., EUR in EUR/USD).
9. Bear Market
   Market environment with predominantly falling prices and pessimistic sentiment.
10. Beta
    Measure of an asset’s volatility compared with the overall market.
11. Bid Price
    The price at which the market (broker) is willing to buy — traders sell at the bid.
12. Bollinger Bands
    Volatility channel around a moving average (usually ±2 standard deviations).
13. Break-even Point
    Price at which a trade shows neither profit nor loss.
14. Breakout
    Price moving out of a chart formation (e.g., range, triangle).
15. Broker
    Intermediary between trader and interbank market; provides platforms and accounts.
16. Broker Server
    The broker’s technical infrastructure that receives and executes orders.
17. Carry Trade
    Exploiting interest rate differentials between two currencies by going long the higher-yielding currency.
18. CFD (Contract for Difference)
    Derivative that reflects the price difference of an underlying without physical ownership.
19. Chart
    Graphical representation of price movements (line, bar, candlestick charts).
20. Chart Analysis
    Technical analysis of price action using patterns, lines, and indicators.
21. Chart Pattern
    Formations such as head-and-shoulders, triangle, flag that signal targets or reversals.
22. Closing Price
    Last traded price of a period (candle/bar).
23. Confirmation
    A second indicator or price move that validates a signal.
24. Correlation
    Statistical measure (−1 to +1) of how two instruments move together.
25. Cross Pair
    Currency pair without USD as the quote or base (e.g., EUR/GBP).
26. Custom Indicator
    Indicator coded in MQL4/MQL5.
27. Daily Candle
    A candle showing the price movement of one trading day.
28. Delta
    Option Greek (0–1) indicating how the option price changes relative to the underlying.
29. Derivative
    Financial instrument whose value is derived from an underlying (e.g., CFD, option, future).
30. Depth of Market (DOM)
    Display of available liquidity at different price levels.
31. Divergence
    Indicator and price move in opposite directions — often a reversal signal.
32. Drawdown
    Decline from the last equity peak to the following trough, in % or absolute terms.
33. ECN (Electronic Communication Network)
    Network matching orders directly between participants, without a dealing desk.
34. Equity
    Account balance plus/minus unrealized P/L of open positions.
35. Equity Stop
    Automatic stop-loss based on a maximum equity drawdown.
36. Execution Delay
    Time between placing an order and its actual execution.
37. Expert Advisor (EA)
    Automated trading robot in MQL4/MQL5 that executes strategies autonomously.
38. Expiration (Expiry)
    Date on which a derivative (option, future) expires.
39. Fibonacci Retracement
    Horizontal levels at 23.6%, 38.2%, 61.8% used to spot pullbacks.
40. Forex (Foreign Exchange)
    The currency market where currencies are traded.
41. Free Margin
    Available funds in the account not tied up as margin.
42. Fundamental Analysis
    Valuation of assets using economic, financial, and political data.
43. Gap
    Area with no traded price when the open is above/below the prior period’s close.
44. Moving Average (MA)
    Indicator that smooths price by averaging over a period.
45. Grid Trading
    Strategy placing buy and sell orders at fixed intervals.
46. Hedging
    Risk reduction by holding offsetting positions.
47. High
    Highest price of a period (candle/bar).
48. High-Frequency Trading (HFT)
    Algorithmic trading with very high transaction rates and short holding periods.
49. Ichimoku Kinko Hyo
    Multi-component indicator (Tenkan, Kijun, Senkou Span lines and cloud).
50. Initial Margin
    Required collateral to open a position.
51. Correlation (Alt.)
    Describes how closely two markets/instruments tend to move together (positive/negative).
52. Account Size
    Total capital available in a trading account.
53. Price
    Current trading price of an underlying.
54. Leverage
    Ratio between trade size and own capital deployed.
55. Limit Order
    Order executed only at the set price or better.
56. Liquidity
    How easily an asset can be traded without significant slippage.
57. Lot
    Standard trade size; 1 lot = 100,000 units of the base currency in forex.
58. Long Position
    Buying an instrument expecting prices to rise.
59. MACD
    Trend-following oscillator from two moving averages and a signal line.
60. Margin
    Collateral posted to open a leveraged position.
61. Margin Call
    Warning that free equity fell below a threshold; positions may be forcibly closed.
62. Market Maker
    Broker model where the broker acts as counterparty to client trades.
63. Market Order
    Immediate execution at the best available price.
64. Momentum
    Indicator measuring the speed of a price move.
65. NAV (Net Asset Value)
    Net asset value of a fund or portfolio per share.
66. News Trading
    Strategy based on market reactions to economic news.
67. Open Price
    First traded price of a new period.
68. Overbought
    Indicator state suggesting excessive buying pressure (e.g., RSI > 70).
69. Oversold
    Indicator state suggesting excessive selling pressure (e.g., RSI < 30).
70. Pending Order
    Order that becomes active once a set level is reached (limit/stop).
71. Pip (Point)
    Smallest price change of a forex pair (usually 0.0001) or CFD tick.
72. Position Sizing
    Setting trade volume based on risk and money-management rules.
73. Profit Factor
    Ratio of gross profits to gross losses for a strategy.
74. Quote Currency
    The second currency in a pair (e.g., USD in EUR/USD) — price per unit of the base currency.
75. Range
    Sideways movement between horizontal support and resistance levels.
76. Realized Profit/Loss
    Actual profit/loss from positions that have been closed.
77. Resistance
    Price level where selling pressure is expected and rallies often stall.
78. Risk Management
    Rules and techniques to limit losses and preserve capital.
79. Rollover
    Carrying a position over the trading day with interest adjustment (swap).
80. Scalping
    Very short-term strategy with quick entries/exits to capture small moves.
81. Session
    Trading session of major markets (e.g., London, New York, Tokyo).
82. Sharpe Ratio
    Return-to-risk metric (excess return divided by volatility).
83. Short Position
    Selling an instrument expecting prices to fall.
84. Slippage
    Difference between expected and actual execution price, especially in high volatility.
85. Spread
    Difference between ask and bid; main cost factor in forex/CFD trading.
86. Stop-Loss
    Automatic order closing a position at a predefined loss level.
87. Stop Order
    Pending order activated when a level is exceeded (stop-buy/stop-sell).
88. Strategy Tester
    MT tool for backtesting and optimizing Expert Advisors.
89. Swap
    Financing adjustment (interest differential) charged/credited when holding overnight.
90. Take Profit
    Automatic order closing a position at a predefined profit level.
91. Technical Analysis
    Study of charts and indicators to forecast future price movements.
92. Template
    Saved chart configuration (colors, indicators, timeframes) applied to other charts.
93. Tick
    Smallest possible price change; in forex measured in pips, in stocks in cents.
94. Time and Sales
    Feed of all actually executed trades with time and price.
95. Timeframe
    Time interval of a candle or bar (e.g., M1, H1, D1).
96. Trailing Stop
    Dynamic stop-loss that follows price at defined intervals to lock in gains.
97. Trend
    Direction of price movement over a defined period (up, down, sideways).
98. Trendline
    Straight line connecting highs or lows to visualize a trend.
99. Turnover
    Total volume of all contracts or currencies traded over a given period.
100. Volatility
     Measure of the intensity of price fluctuations; basis for many risk and options models.