Single candlestick patterns are the foundation of price action trading. Each pattern is the visual record of a specific battle between buyers and sellers during a single time period — and some outcomes of those battles are predictable enough to act on. The patterns in this lesson do not work in isolation. They work when they appear at the right location — at support, resistance, a key Fibonacci level, or after a sustained trend. Location is what gives single candle patterns their power.
The Pin Bar
The pin bar is the most important single candlestick pattern in price action trading. It has a small body at one end and a long wick — the "pin" — extending in the other direction. The long wick shows that price tested a level aggressively but was rejected — buyers or sellers stepped in and forced price back.
A bullish pin bar has a long lower wick and a small body near the top — it forms at support or the bottom of a downtrend and signals that buyers rejected lower prices and pushed back. A bearish pin bar has a long upper wick and a small body near the bottom — it forms at resistance or the top of an uptrend and signals that sellers rejected higher prices and pushed back.
For a valid pin bar: ✓ The wick should be at least 2× the length of the body ✓ The body should be in the top 1/3 (bullish) or bottom 1/3 (bearish) of the total candle range ✓ It should form at a key level — support, resistance, or Fibonacci ✓ The prior trend should be clear — a bullish pin at the bottom of a downtrend is more powerful than a random bullish pin in ranging conditions
The Doji
A doji forms when the open and close prices are the same or nearly the same — creating a candle with almost no body. The wicks can be of any length. A doji signals indecision — neither buyers nor sellers dominated the period.
The significance of a doji depends entirely on context. A doji after a long uptrend at resistance is a meaningful signal — momentum may be stalling. A doji in the middle of a ranging market where candles regularly have small bodies is meaningless — it is just another candle in an undirected market.
Standard Doji Small body, wicks of any size. Pure indecision. Long-Legged Doji Small body, very long wicks both sides. Extreme indecision — large range, ended where it started. Gravestone Doji Open and close at the low. Long upper wick. Bearish signal at resistance — buyers tried and failed. Dragonfly Doji Open and close at the high. Long lower wick. Bullish signal at support — sellers tried and failed.
The Hammer and Hanging Man
The hammer and hanging man are the same candle shape in different contexts. Both have a small body at the top and a long lower wick — at least twice the length of the body — with little or no upper wick.
When this shape appears after a downtrend, it is called a hammer — a bullish reversal signal. The long lower wick shows sellers pushed price sharply lower but buyers stepped in strongly and pushed it back up to close near the high. When the same shape appears after an uptrend, it is called a hanging man — a potential bearish reversal. The same wick shows buyers are starting to struggle to maintain higher prices.
The Shooting Star
The shooting star is the opposite of the hammer — a small body at the bottom and a long upper wick. It forms at the top of uptrends and at resistance levels and is a bearish reversal signal. The long upper wick shows buyers pushed price aggressively higher during the period but sellers overwhelmed them and drove price back down to close near the low.
The shooting star is one of the most reliable single-candle reversal signals in forex — particularly when it forms with a large upper wick at a key resistance level after an extended bullish move. The larger the wick relative to the body, the more forceful the rejection.
The Marubozu
A marubozu is a candle with no wicks — or almost no wicks. The open is the high (bearish marubozu) or the open is the low (bullish marubozu). It signals strong, uninterrupted momentum in one direction for the entire period. A bullish marubozu opened at the low, rose consistently throughout the period, and closed at the high — buyers were completely in control with no seller pushback at any point. A bearish marubozu tells the same story in reverse.
Marubozu candles are most significant when they appear after a consolidation or a breakout — they confirm that the move has real momentum behind it rather than a brief spike that was immediately faded.