Trend
The direction and quality of successive price swings.
What to notice
An uptrend often makes higher highs and higher lows; a downtrend often makes lower highs and lower lows. A range does neither consistently.
The context that matters
State the timeframe. A bullish five-minute move can occur inside a bearish one-hour structure.
Common mistake
Using one moving-average cross to declare a durable trend.
Try it on a chart
Label the last four meaningful swing points on two timeframes and compare your classifications.
Open Paper Signal LabPaper Signal Lab provides educational chart analysis and simulated research. Patterns and historical paper outcomes do not guarantee future market results. Public research does not grant real-money trading access.