Finance, minus the jargon
The stuff everyone pretends to understand — P/E ratios, market caps, short selling, dividends — explained in plain English for complete beginners. If your group chat can't follow it, we rewrite it.
Everything here is informational and educational — never investment advice. We explain how markets work; we don't tell you what to trade.
What is short selling? Making money when stocks fall
Short selling is betting a stock will drop: borrow shares, sell them, buy them back cheaper. Simple idea, unlimited downside — here's how it actually works.
What is a gamma squeeze? When options move the stock
A gamma squeeze is when massive call-option buying forces market makers to buy the actual stock, pushing it up — which forces them to buy even more.
What is dilution? How your slice of the pie shrinks
Stock dilution is when a company creates new shares, shrinking every existing holder's ownership. Here's why companies do it and when it should worry you.
What is a stock split? More shares, same pizza
A stock split turns each share into several cheaper ones without changing what you own. Here's why companies do it and what a reverse split signals.
What is the S&P 500? The market's default scoreboard
The S&P 500 is a list of ~500 of America's biggest companies — and the number everyone means when they say 'the market.' Here's how it actually works.
What is an IPO? A company's first day on the market
An IPO is when a private company first sells shares to the public. Here's how the process works, who gets the good price, and why day-one buyers often overpay.
Bull vs bear market — what do they actually mean?
Bull = rising and optimistic, bear = falling and fearful. Here's where the 20% definition comes from and why the labels matter less than people think.
What is earnings season? The market's report card weeks
Four times a year, nearly every public company reports results within a few weeks — here's what happens, what to watch, and why stocks gap overnight.
What is EPS? The profit number behind every headline
Earnings per share is a company's profit divided by its share count — the number that powers P/E ratios and moves stocks every earnings season.
What is a candlestick chart? Reading the little green and red boxes
Each candle shows four prices — open, high, low, close — for one slice of time. Here's how to read them, and how much of candle-lore to actually believe.
What is after-hours trading? The market after the bell
Stocks keep trading after the 4pm close — thinly, wildly, and with wider spreads. Here's how extended hours work and why prices there can lie.
What is a market maker? The house that quotes both sides
Market makers quote a buy and sell price on everything, all day — earning the spread for keeping markets instant. Villains of memes, plumbing of reality.
What is volume? The market's lie detector
Volume is how many shares changed hands — the number that tells you whether a price move is real conviction or three bored traders in an empty room.
What is float? The shares that actually trade
Float is the number of shares actually available for public trading — and the secret ingredient in every wild low-float spike and squeeze story.
What is dollar-cost averaging? Investing on autopilot
DCA means investing a fixed amount on a schedule regardless of price — the strategy that removes timing, emotion, and most beginner mistakes in one move.
What is an index fund? Owning everything, cheaply
An index fund copies a market list like the S&P 500 instead of picking stocks — the boring invention that beats most professionals. Here's why it works.
Limit order vs market order — which button do you press?
Market orders fill instantly at whatever the price is; limit orders fill only at your price or better. The difference costs real money on the wrong stock.
What is margin? Trading with borrowed money
Margin means borrowing from your broker to buy more stock than your cash allows — amplifying gains, amplifying losses, and introducing the margin call.
What is implied volatility? The price of expected drama
IV is the market's forecast of how wildly a stock will move — it's why options get expensive before earnings and why 'IV crush' ruins correct guesses.
What are options? Calls and puts for complete beginners
Options are contracts to buy or sell a stock at a set price by a set date. Calls bet up, puts bet down. Here's the machinery in plain English.
What is an ETF? The basket that ate the market
An ETF is a basket of investments you buy in one click, like a stock. Here's how they work, why fees matter, and the difference from a mutual fund.
What is a dividend? Getting paid to hold a stock
Dividends are cash a company pays you just for holding its stock. Here's how they work, what yield means, and the trap hiding inside big yields.
What is market cap? Why a $900 stock can be smaller than a $50 one
Market cap is the total price of a company, not one share. It's the number that makes stock prices comparable — and beginners skip it constantly.
What is a short squeeze? The GameStop mechanic, explained
A short squeeze happens when a heavily bet-against stock rises, forcing short sellers to buy — pushing it even higher. Here's the machine behind the memes.
What is a P/E ratio? Explained like you're new here
P/E ratio explained in plain English: what it actually measures, what counts as high or low, and the mistake almost every beginner makes with it.
What is stonk.gg? The whole idea, explained
stonk.gg is a free discovery platform for the retail trading world — apps, Discord servers, and creators — built around one shared war chest. Here's the whole idea.