Share.
In plain English
A share is a single unit of ownership in a company or fund. Own one share and you own a tiny slice of the whole business, including a claim on its assets and, often, its profits. Companies issue a set number of shares, so your stake is your shares divided by the total outstanding. Shareholders may receive dividends and, for common shares, usually get to vote on certain company matters.
01Why it matters
Buying shares is how ordinary people own part of real businesses, which is the engine behind most long-term retirement growth.
02The math, step by step
A company has 1,000,000 shares outstanding. You buy 100 shares. You now own 100 / 1,000,000, which is 0.01 percent of the company, plus a claim on any dividends it pays per share.
Illustrative example. The amounts here are hypothetical, chosen to show how the math works, not real quoted rates or figures.
03What this is NOT
A share is NOT a loan to the company. A share is ownership; a bond is money you lend the company that it pays back with interest. Shareholders own a piece, bondholders are creditors.
Plain-English answers from our glossary. Receipts included. Never advice.
Educational tool. Answers come only from ClearMoneySchool's published glossary and are not advice. Why we never give advice