Day order: A buy or sell order that automatically expires at the end of the day's trading session if it is not executed.

Death benefit: The payment made to a beneficiary of an annuity or insurance policy upon the death of the policyholder.

Defined benefit plan: A company retirement plan, such as a pension plan, in which a retired employee receives a fixed amount on a regular basis from the employer (based on salary history and years of service).

Defined contribution plan: A company retirement plan, such as a 401(k), in which the employee elects to defer a portion of his or her salary into the plan, directing the investments of those dollars and bearing the investment risk.

Defined portfolio: An investment company that invests in a professionally selected portfolio of bonds and/or stocks. Unlike a mutual fund, the portfolio's investments are fixed over the life of the trust, are not managed, and have a stated or known maturity. Units of the trust's investment portfolio are sold to investors through financial consultants. Also called a "unit investment trust."

Derivative: A highly complex type of investment whose value is derived from another underlying asset. For example, options are derivatives because the option has an underlying stock, commodity or other asset on which its price is based.

Dilution: The change in earnings per share or book value per share, resulting from the sale of additional shares.

Discount: The amount by which a bond is priced below its par value (face value). (See premium.)

Discretionary: An account in which a financial consultant can buy or sell investments based upon the account holder's investment guidelines without the account holder's prior knowledge and consent.

Distribution: The payment of a dividend or capital gain.

Diversification: The allocation of assets among various types of investments (stocks, bonds and cash), industries and company size. A strategy to help offset risk.

Dividend: The distribution of corporate profits in cash or stock to shareholders, usually paid quarterly.

Dividend reinvestment: An authorized arrangement in which cash dividends are automatically reinvested in additional shares of stock, usually without a fee and sometimes at a discount, increasing the amount of stock in the account. Those dividends are still subject to income tax.

Dollar cost averaging: A system of purchasing securities at regular intervals, usually each month, with a fixed dollar amount. This results in the purchase of more shares when prices are low and fewer shares when prices rise.

Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA): The most widely recognized market indicator, made up of 30 large and actively traded industrial stocks.

Dynasty trust: A generation-skipping trust that, because of favorable laws in certain states, may continue in existence forever, benefiting generation after generation of beneficiaries.