Structure in five words
Swing, break of structure, change of character, sweep and dealing range, defined tightly enough that two people would mark the same chart the same way.
Every read on this site uses the same five words. Here they are, defined tightly enough that two people would mark the same chart the same way.
Swing
A swing high is a bar whose high sits above the highs of the bars on both sides of it. A swing low is the mirror image. A swing only exists once the bars to its right have closed, so it is always confirmed late. Pick how many bars on each side count, write the number down, and keep it.
Break of structure
A close beyond the last swing in the direction of the trend. In an uptrend, that is a close above the last swing high. Closes count. Wicks don't.
Change of character
A close beyond the last swing against the trend. It flips the trend. In a downtrend, a close above the lower high that led to the most recent low turns the trend up.
Sweep
A wick through a level that closes back inside it. The same level can be swept or broken, and the close is what tells them apart. Sweeps happen where stop orders gather: prior swing highs and lows, equal highs and lows, round numbers.
Dealing range
The span from the last swing low to the last swing high on the higher timeframe. Above its midpoint is premium. Below it is discount. In an uptrend, longs are better placed in discount. In a downtrend, shorts are better placed in premium. A new break of structure starts a new range.
What the words don't do
They tell you where price is and where a view is wrong. They don't tell you what happens next, and we tested that directly: see What we tested, including what failed. Structure is how we place a trade, never how we pick one.
The first two Structure lessons are free and go further: swings and breaks and changes of character.
Education only. Nothing here is advice about your account.