What Is Three Black Crows?
Three Black Crows is a bearish candlestick reversal pattern formed by three consecutive long-bodied red (bearish) candles, each opening within the previous candle's body and closing near the day's low. The pattern signals a strong shift from buyers to sellers, usually appearing at the top of an uptrend.
Reliability depends on context: at the top of a sustained uptrend, the pattern is more meaningful than mid-trend. Volume confirmation strengthens the signal — increasing volume on each successive crow suggests genuine distribution rather than random noise.
Common entry: short on the close of the third candle or on a confirming retest. Stop-loss above the high of the first crow. The pattern's predictive value is moderate — false signals happen, especially in low-volume environments. Pair with other bearish indicators (declining MACD, RSI divergence) for higher conviction.
Related terms
- Three White Soldiers — Bullish reversal pattern: three consecutive long-bodied bullish candles.
- Candlestick Chart — Price chart format where each candle shows open, high, low, and close for a period.
- Trend — The general direction of price movement over a period — uptrend, downtrend, or sideways.
- Engulfing Pattern — A two-candle reversal pattern where the second candle fully engulfs the first.