Trading Glossary

Comprehensive reference for all trading terms, concepts, and indicators used in the SignalPilot Education Hub curriculum.

A

Absorption

When large orders (institutions) buy or sell into aggressive market orders without moving price significantly. Indicates strong hands accumulating or distributing. Opposite of exhaustion. See: Lesson 2 (Volume), Lesson 22 (Order Book Analysis)

Ask (Offer)

The lowest price a seller is willing to accept. The "sell side" of the order book. See: Lesson 21 (Bid-Ask Spread)

ATR (Average True Range)

Volatility indicator measuring average price range over a period (typically 14 bars). Used for stop-loss placement and position sizing.

B

Bid

The highest price a buyer is willing to pay. The "buy side" of the order book. See: Lesson 21 (Bid-Ask Spread)

Bid-Ask Spread

The difference between the highest bid and lowest ask. Represents the cost of immediacy (market orders). Widens with volatility/uncertainty, tightens with confidence. See: Lesson 21 (Spread Dynamics)

BOS (Break of Structure)

When price breaks a significant swing high (in uptrend) or swing low (in downtrend), confirming trend continuation. Part of market structure analysis. See: Lesson 3 (Price Action), Lesson 16 (Market Structure)

Breakout

When price moves decisively through a defined level (resistance, range high, consolidation). Can be true (continuation) or false (trap). See: Lesson 1 (Liquidity Lie)

C

CHoCH (Change of Character)

When price breaks counter-trend structure, signaling potential trend reversal. Weaker than BOS. See: Lesson 16 (Market Structure)

Circuit Breaker

Automated trading system safeguard that halts trading when predefined conditions are met (max loss, volatility spike, drawdown threshold). Also called kill switch. See: Lesson 57 (Automation)

Cumulative Delta

Running total of delta (buy volume minus sell volume) over time. Shows net buying or selling pressure. See: Lesson 2 (Volume)

D

Dark Pool

Private exchange for institutional trading, not visible on public order books. Large block orders executed off-exchange to minimize market impact. See: Lesson 25 (Dark Pool Detection)

Delta

The difference between buy volume and sell volume at a specific price level or time period. Positive delta = more buying than selling. See: Lesson 2 (Volume), Lesson 24 (Footprint Charts)

Divergence

When price makes a new high/low but an indicator (RSI, momentum, volume) does not. Signals weakening trend momentum. Warning sign, not reversal signal. See: Lesson 5 (RSI), Plutus Flow docs

E

Exhaustion

When aggressive buying/selling moves price but no one absorbs the orders, causing rapid price movement. Opposite of absorption. Often precedes reversals. See: Lesson 2 (Volume), Lesson 22 (Order Book)

F

Footprint Chart

Chart type showing volume traded at each price level within each candle, split by bid/ask. Reveals order flow and absorption/exhaustion patterns. See: Lesson 24 (Footprint Charts)

H

Harmonic Oscillator

SignalPilot indicator combining 7 momentum components (RSI, Stochastic RSI, MACD, EMA Trend, Momentum, Volume, Divergence Zone) into a voting system. 6-7/7 agreement = high confidence. See: Lesson 5 (RSI), Harmonic Oscillator docs

I

Institutional Flow

Large orders placed by institutions (hedge funds, banks, prop firms). Characterized by absorption, dark pool activity, and gradual accumulation/distribution. See: Lesson 1 (Liquidity), Lesson 25 (Dark Pools)

J

Janus Atlas

SignalPilot indicator displaying 39 different level types (VWAP, volume profile, session levels, market structure, pivots). Used for level-based trading and sweep detection. See: Janus Atlas docs

K

Kill Switch

Automated trading safeguard that immediately stops all trading and/or closes positions when triggered by predefined conditions (max loss, drawdown, volatility). See: Lesson 57 (Automation)

L

Liquidity

Resting orders (stops, limits) at specific price levels. Institutions engineer liquidity sweeps to fill large orders at better prices. Not "natural" support/resistance. See: Lesson 1 (The Liquidity Lie)

Liquidity Pool

Concentration of resting orders at a specific price level. Common at round numbers, obvious support/resistance, and above/below swing highs/lows. Target for institutional sweeps. See: Lesson 1 (Liquidity), Lesson 15 (Liquidity Pools)

Liquidity Sweep

When price briefly breaks a level (support, resistance, swing point) to trigger stops, then quickly reverses. Institutions use sweeps to fill large orders. See: Lesson 1 (Liquidity Lie)

M

Market Structure

The pattern of swing highs and lows that defines trend direction. Higher highs + higher lows = uptrend. Lower highs + lower lows = downtrend. See: Lesson 3 (Price Action), Lesson 16 (Market Structure)

O

Omnideck

SignalPilot "everything indicator" combining 10+ detection systems (Pentarch, NanoFlow, regime bars, Pilot Line, Fibonacci, patterns). Modular display. See: Omnideck docs

Order Book

List of all pending buy (bid) and sell (ask) orders at different price levels. Depth of Market (DOM). Shows liquidity and imbalances. See: Lesson 22 (Order Book Analysis)

Order Flow

The sequence and volume of buy and sell orders executed in real-time. Reveals institutional activity, absorption/exhaustion, and momentum shifts. See: Lesson 3 (Price Action is Dead), Lesson 24 (Footprint)

Overfitting

Optimizing trading strategy parameters too specifically to historical data, causing it to fail in live trading. Curve-fitting. See: Lesson 57 (Automation), Lesson 58 (Backtesting)

P

Pentarch

SignalPilot reversal event detector displaying 5 cycle events: TD (Touchdown), IGN (Ignition), WRN (Warning), CAP (Climax), BDN (Breakdown). 4-layer detection system. See: Pentarch docs

Pilot Line

Trend reference line used in Pentarch and Omnideck systems. Helps identify trend direction and regime. See: Lesson 6 (Moving Averages), Pentarch docs

Plutus Flow

SignalPilot advanced On-Balance Volume (OBV) indicator with trend ribbons, divergence detection, and volume accumulation tracking. See: Plutus Flow docs

POC (Point of Control)

The price level with the highest traded volume in a given period (day, week, session). From Volume Profile analysis. Acts as magnet for price. See: Janus Atlas docs, Volume Profile lessons

R

Regime

Current market state: trending (directional), ranging (choppy), or volatile (high ATR). Determines how to interpret indicators. See: Lesson 5 (RSI), Lesson 22 (Volume Oracle Regimes)

Repainting

When an indicator changes its historical signals after the fact, making backtests unreliable. SignalPilot indicators are non-repainting. See: Lesson 4 (Repaint Problem)

RSI (Relative Strength Index)

Momentum oscillator (0-100). Traditional interpretation: >70 = overbought, <30 = oversold. Reality: regime-dependent (continuation in trends, reversal in ranges). See: Lesson 5 (RSI Extremes)

S

Slippage

The difference between expected fill price and actual fill price. Caused by fast markets, low liquidity, or market orders. Must be included in backtests. See: Lesson 57 (Automation)

Smart Money

Institutional traders (hedge funds, banks, prop firms) with large capital and sophisticated strategies. "Dumb money" = retail traders. See: Lesson 1 (Liquidity), Lesson 13 (Smart Money Concepts)

Sweep

See Liquidity Sweep. Brief break of a level to trigger stops before reversing. See: Lesson 1 (Liquidity Lie)

T

Time & Sales (Tape)

Real-time feed of every executed trade showing time, price, volume, and aggressor side (buy/sell). Used for order flow analysis. See: Lesson 3 (Price Action), Lesson 17 (Time & Sales Mastery)

V

VAH (Value Area High)

The upper boundary of the value area in Volume Profile (typically 70% of volume traded). Acts as resistance/support. See: Janus Atlas docs, Volume Profile lessons

VAL (Value Area Low)

The lower boundary of the value area in Volume Profile (typically 70% of volume traded). Acts as support/resistance. See: Janus Atlas docs, Volume Profile lessons

Volume Oracle

SignalPilot indicator providing 3 volume analysis systems: Volume Flow (buying/selling pressure), Volume Zones (high-volume areas), and Position Manager. See: Volume Oracle docs, Lesson 30 (Regimes)

Volume Profile

Histogram showing volume traded at each price level over a time period. Identifies POC, VAH, VAL, and high/low volume nodes. See: Janus Atlas docs

VWAP (Volume Weighted Average Price)

Average price weighted by volume. Institutions use VWAP as execution benchmark. Daily, weekly, monthly variants. Acts as dynamic support/resistance. See: Janus Atlas docs

W

Walk-Forward Optimization

Backtesting method that trains on Period 1, tests on Period 2, trains on Period 2, tests on Period 3, etc. Prevents overfitting by validating across different market regimes. See: Lesson 57 (Automation), Lesson 58 (Backtesting)