When you start getting into crypto, you immediately come across these strange terms—long and short. It sounds like something from an English TV series, but in reality, it’s the foundation of everything that happens on trading platforms. Let’s figure out where they came from in the first place and why they’re mentioned so often.

An interesting story: these terms first appeared in print back in 1852 in The Merchant's Magazine. But why were they given those particular names? According to one version, it’s simple. Long (from English long — long) was named that way because a position betting on a rise takes time—prices rarely jump instantly. Short (short — short) reflects the opposite: a trade on a decline is usually closed faster.

So what does this look like in practice? Long and short in trading are two opposite strategies for earning money. When you open a long, you’re betting on the price to go up. You bought a token for $100, you’re confident it will rise to $150—that’s the whole idea. The difference between the entry and exit price is your profit.

Short works exactly the other way around. You borrow an asset from the exchange, sell it right away at the current price, wait for the price to drop, and buy it back cheaper. Example: Bitcoin costs $61000, and you believe it will fall to $59000. You borrowed one БТЦ, sold it, waited for the drop, bought it back, and returned it to the exchange. The remainder minus the commission is your earnings.

Now who are these bulls and bears that are constantly mentioned? Bulls are the ones who believe in growth and open long positions. They drive demand and push prices up (think of how a bull raises its horns). Bears are the opposite: they bet on a decline, open short positions, and push down the value of the asset.

Now let’s talk about how all of this works in practice. For long and short trading, people use futures—contracts that let you profit from price movements without actually owning the asset itself. In crypto, the most common are perpetual contracts (no execution date—you can hold the position for as long as you want) and settlement contracts (you don’t receive the asset itself, but the difference in value).

There’s also a tool called hedging. This is when you open two opposing positions to protect yourself. For example, you bought two bitcoins on a long, but opened one on a short—this reduces risk, but it also cuts potential profit. If the asset rose from $30000 to $40000, your profit would be (2-1) × ($40000 - $30000) = $10000 instead of $20000. On the other hand, if the price falls to $25000, the loss would shrink from $20000 to $5000.

One important point—liquidation. When you trade with leverage, the exchange monitors your collateral. If the price suddenly reverses and the collateral isn’t enough, the position will be closed automatically. Before that, a margin call usually comes—an offer to top up your account. Good risk management and constant monitoring of open positions help you avoid liquidation.

Practical pros and cons. Long is easier to understand—it’s simply buying an asset. Short is more complex logically and psychologically, and prices fall faster and more unpredictably than they rise. Leverage can bring bigger profits, but it also increases risks. You need to constantly watch your margin level and remember that commissions and funding rates will eat into part of your earnings.

In the end: long and short in trading are two ways to earn money depending on your forecast. Bulls bet on growth through long, while bears bet on a decline through short. Futures and derivatives make it possible to do this without owning the asset and by using leverage. But remember—higher potential income always goes hand in hand with higher risks. This isn’t a magic wand for getting rich quickly; it’s a tool that requires knowledge and discipline.