Trend

A trend is the dominant direction price is travelling over a given timeframe. An uptrend prints higher highs and higher lows; a downtrend prints lower highs and lower lows; a range (or sideways trend) oscillates between a floor and a ceiling with no clear direction.

Identifying the trend is the first job in technical analysis because almost every other signal means something different depending on it — an oversold reading in an uptrend is a buy-the-dip opportunity, while the same reading in a downtrend can keep getting more oversold.