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In this English vocabulary worksheet, we will be talking about the following things:

  • A definition of Stock Market.
  • Vocabulary words regarding the Stock Market.

Read on!

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What Is the Stock Market? Definition and Explanation

The Stock Market is the financial market where company shares are issued and traded.

Example: ownership titles issued by corporations and listed on the stock exchange.

For whom is the Stock Market intended?

It’s directed at both institutional investors, which are bodies such as investment funds or banks, and individual investors, which are ordinary people.

Why should one be interested in the Stock Market?

Having an interest in the Stock Market is about following the economy in the broad sense and the business world in particular.

a stock market graph on a laptop

Stock Market Vocabulary: List of the Most Important Words

WordDefinition
AskAs opposed to bid, this is the minimum price a seller is willing to receive for a security
Blue chip stocksShares of major companies that are leaders in their sector.
DividendThe earnings a company equally shared among the shareholders in proportion to the number of shares they hold
IssueIncreasing the number of shares in a company's share capital
LeverageBorrowing shares from a brokerage firm and to sell them at a higher price, then keeping the extra money
MarginIt’s the difference between the total value of one’s investment, and the value lent by one’s broker
SlumpSynonymous to collapse
SpikeA very sharp rise of a market
SpreadIt's the margin between bid and ask prices of a share
TumbleSynonymous to collapse, to falter
Stock market vocabulary for beginners
BondA debt security
CashA market where shares are immediately exchanged for currency
Day tradingRepeatedly making speculative moves (buying and selling) in the same day before the close of the market
Expense ratioIt's the percentage of the fund's assets that’s lost each year to pay the major bills
Fluctuate (to)Upward or downward changes in a market over a long-term study
Index fundsAn investment fund that seeks to reproduce, as much as possible, the performance of a specific stock market benchmark
Mutual fundIt’s a financial instrument based on money raised from numerous investors for various securities and shares
Market OrderIt’s a request to buy or sell assets on the stock market. It can be sent directly to the financial market, or to an intermediary
Price-to-earnings ratioIt compares the current price to earnings to determine whether the stock is overvalued or undervalued
StocksSecurities and titles
Target-date-fundInvestments with target maturity dates that align with key goals in investors’ lives
List of basic stock market vocabulary
Averaging downWhen an investor takes advantage of a fall to buy more stocks
Bear marketA period of time when the price is falling
BetaA coefficient that measures the relative volatility (or specific risk) of a security compared to its benchmark
Bull marketA period of time when the price is rising
Going longMeans having foreseen an upward trend for a financial asset
HaircutAn extremely tight bid-ask spread for a particular share
HighHigh level of a security
Hold outAs opposed to Support, it’s the level at which the highest price is stopped by sellers to delay the price increase
ListTo be admitted to the stock exchange
LowLow level of a security
Moving averageThe average price of a share during a given period
OpeningThe earliest displayed price for a security at the beginning of the day's trading
Pink Sheet StocksSecurities that don't meet the requirements to have a listing on a standard market exchange, but they can be traded ‘over-the-counter’
QuoteThe latest share price information
RallyIt's an increase following positive information, or a public feeling of trust
SectorA cluster of shares of the same corporation
Short sellingSelling a security you don't own to buy it back later
Stock symbolIt’s a unique combination of letters or numbers used to identify a share on the stock exchange
VolatilityA stock that goes up and down quickly
VolumeNumber of securities traded during a trading session or transaction
YieldThe yearly income that a share provides, at a given moment, to its holder
Broker Vocabulary
AgentIt’s someone who records buy and sell orders in the financial markets for his or her clients
BrokerAn intermediary in charge of placing buy and sell orders on the markets
DealIt’s the sale of a company's assets, or shares on a stock market
FactorCircumstances that may affect the share price
Go-betweenThey intervene between economic agents by adjusting the supply of capital to the demand for capital, that is by draining the unused savings of some agents to lend or re-lend them to other agents.
MiddlemanSynonymous to broker, go-between, intermediary
NegotiatorCarries out stock market transactions on behalf of its clients, who place investment orders with it.
RepresentativeLicensed professionals who trade in stocks and shares on behalf of investors
TraffickerA person in charge of the technical and organisational management of advertising space and campaigns on a website, mobile application or network
TrusteeSome organisations such as banks, investment companies, management companies, insurance companies
Stock Exchange Vocabulary
ArbitrageA transaction in which a security (or a line of securities) is sold to buy another security, considered to have a higher potential gain
AssetWhat is traded on the markets, such as shares, bonds, currencies or raw materials
Big BoardAn informal term for New York Stock Exchange
CapitalA company’s value related to the market price
Little BoardAn informal term for New York second Stock Exchange
NegotiableIt's a security generally traded on the secondary market after being sold on the primary market
PortfolioA set of investments held by an investor
SecuritiesShares and stocks traded on the stock exchange
StakeA financial contribution from one company to another
Stock exchangeA stock trading place
StockholderA natural or legal person who holds shares in a company
Stock marketSynonymous to stock exchange
TradeBuying and selling on financial markets
Stock Market Investment Vocabulary
Buy-outIt’s a financial scheme enabling the purchase of a company through a holding company
CommoditiesIt’s the trade, in large quantities of raw materials, and more generally basic materials, be they metals, agricultural, energy, etc.
DebentureIt’s a fragment of debt raised by a company, a local authority or a state
Earnings per shareIt indicates the theoretical growth of a shareholder
FloatationSelling part of the company in the shape of shares, which are then traded
Growth stocksShares in a company that investors and traders expect to continue to grow rapidly
Initial Public Offering (IPO)When a company decides to start selling its shares to the public
InvestmentIt’s buying or selling securities on the financial markets
LiquidityThe ability to buy or sell assets quickly in large quantities
Range bound shareA transaction in which the loss on the sale of a share is reduced to as small an amount as possible
SpeculationCarrying out a lot of short-term financial transactions in the expectation of making quick capital gains
Price Vocabulary
BidIt’s the price of current market demand
BoomA fast-rising stock when the number of people wanting to buy quickly exceeds those wanting to sell a stock.
BounceA stock that is rising again after a significant decline
BourseIt’s the place where stocks and shares which are listed on the stock exchange are bought and sold by investors.
CloseThe price set at the close of the stock exchange, used as a reference for the following day’s opening of trading
CrashA drastic and large-scale collapse in the prices of one or more asset classes
DipA slight decrease
DriftA decreasing trend
IndexIt’s an indicator that investors use to assess, evaluate and compare a cluster of stocks.
LoserWhen the value of a share is falling
Plummet (to)To drop down, synonymous to plunge
Plunge (to)to collapse, to tumble
PriceA security trading value
RetreatRefers to the fall of a stock after a rise
RocketA market whose shares are escalating rapidly in an unexpected way
SoarAnother word for rocket
Other Terms
CAC-40 (France)It's the main stock market index of Paris Stock Exchange
COMEX (New-York)It’s an energy and precious metals exchange founded in New York in 1933, which merged with the Nymex, itself acquired by the Chicago Mercantile Exchange in August 2008
DAX index (Germany)Or Deutscher AktienindeX, is the main German stock exchange index
Dow-Jones (U.S.)The oldest American stock index
Footsie (FTSE London)A stock market index of the 100 most highly capitalised UK companies listed on the London Stock Exchange, over 70% of the London market
Hang-seng index (Hong-Kong)It’s the flagship index of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and run by Hang Seng Indexes Company Limited, a subsidiary of Hang Seng Bank
RTS IndexOr Russian Trading System, was a stock market index based on 50 Russian companies listed on the RTS Moscow Stock Exchange
Wall Street (U.S.)It’s the world’s biggest stock exchange, based in Manhattan

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