Wick

Glossary · Market Structure

A wick (or shadow) is the thin line above or below a candle's body, marking prices that traded during the period but were rejected by the close. Long wicks show where aggressive orders met stronger opposition — a long lower wick means sellers pushed down and buyers slammed it back before the candle ended.

"A wick is the market showing you where it went and got slapped."

The body shows open-to-close; the wicks show the full traveled range. Context sets the meaning: a long lower wick into support on heavy volume is rejection — sellers pushed, buyers answered with size. The same wick in the middle of nowhere on thin volume is noise. Length relative to the body matters too: a wick 2–3x the body is a statement; a stub is nothing.

Two traps. First, wicks repaint until the candle closes — that big 4-hour 'rejection' can become a full-bodied breakdown two hours later, so wait for the close before acting on it. Second, a wick through a level is often a liquidity sweep, not a failed move: price went there to collect stops, which means the level did its job. Wick extremes also mark unfinished business — price revisits them more often than feels random.

Pull up the chart and study the wicks →

Related jargon

Questions

What is Wick in crypto trading?

A wick (or shadow) is the thin line above or below a candle's body, marking prices that traded during the period but were rejected by the close. Long wicks show where aggressive orders met stronger opposition — a long lower wick means sellers pushed down and buyers slammed it back before the candle ended.

How would a trader say it?

A wick is the market showing you where it went and got slapped.

Part of the Crypto Jargon glossary — every term, decoded the way a trader would say it.

Crypto Jargon

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