What that ridiculous finance jargon actually means Actor Michael Douglas portraying Gordon Gekko in a scene from the 1987 'Wall Street'. I GOT a home run on those Bo Dereks in this bullish phase. Or something like that. Finance jargon is a world of its own, but if you've ever wondered what on earth negative gearing is or why people talk about bulls and bears, read on for all the big buzzwords explained, courtesy of Nasdaq. Ankle biter - Stock in companies with a market capitalisation of less than $500 million. At the bell - At the opening or close of the market Aunt Millie - An unsophisticated investor Baby bond - A bond with a par value of less than $1000. Back up the truck - In the equity context, this means 'prepare for a big buyer' Bankmail - An agreement between a company engaged in a takeover bid and a bank that the bank will not finance someone else's bid Barefoot pilgrim - Slang for an unsophisticated investor who lost everything on the stock market. Not to be confused with Scott Pape's Barefoot Investor. Bearish - Having a negative view or a market in a downward trend Big uglies - Slang for unpopular stock Bo Derek stock - High quality stocks Bottom fisher - An investor looking to buy at the lowest price and hoping prices will rise in the future Bourse - French for a stock market Buck - Slang for one million dollars Bullish - Rising market or a positive view, as in the opposite of bearish Buy on the bad news - Buying stock just after a price drop related to bad news as investors believe the price will hit bottom and go up A trader works the floor on the New York Stock Exchange Picture: AP Photo/Richard Drew. Clean your skirts - Check all your legal obligations Cats and dogs - Speculative stocks with short histories of sales, earnings, and dividend payments. Dawn raid - Buying all the shares of a company when the market opens before they know what is happening Dead cat bounce - A temporary recovery after a major fall in the market Debt ceiling - The maximum amount that can be borrowed Dim sum bonds - Slang for bonds denominated in Chinese yuan issued in Hong Kong Exotic option - Options that are more complex than simple call or put options Fat fingers - The mistakes made when people incorrectly key in an order Fry a bigger fish - Work on a larger trade than the one you've just done Furlough - A temporary leave of absence from work Let's leave this joint and fry a bigger fish. Godfather offer - An offer that simply can't be refused because it's either too big, or for fear of lawsuits Golden parachute - Compensation for departing executives in a takeover situation Goldilocks economy - An economy that is 'not too hot, not too cold, but just right' Gunslinger - An aggressive manager who makes risky investments looking for high returns Haircut - The difference between the actual market value of a security and the value assessed by the lending side of a transaction Hawkish - Taking an aggressive tone. For example if the Reserve Bank is hawkish on inflation it means they will aggressively try to tackle it. It's the opposite of dovish, which is a more peaceful rhetoric Home run - A large gain in a short period of time Kangaroos - Slang for Australian stocks Naked options - An unhedged strategy that does not offset risk Negative gearing - Situation where an investor has borrowed to invest but income does not cover expenses. In Australia the shortfall can be deducted from income tax. Octovigintillion - A unit of quantity (1 followed by 87 zeros) On the money - At the same sale price as the last sale Traders at the New York Stock Exchange. Poison pill - An anti-takeover strategy where certain people can buy shares below market value. It's named after the cyanide pill government agents are said to be instructed to swallow if they suspect capture is imminent Quadragintillion - A unit of quantity (1 followed by 123 zeros) Stagflation - Slow economic growth and high unemployment with rising prices Take a bath - To sustain a loss on a speculation or investment Turkey - A losing investment War babies - Slang for stocks and bonds of companies in the defence industry Valium picnic - A non-trading day on an exchange or market holiday Window dressing - Trading activity at the end of a financial year to give the appearance of a busy and successful portfolio Zombies - Companies that continue to operate while waiting for a merger or to be closed, even though they are insolvent Have you got any other good ones to add to the list?