A sudden volume spike tells you something important just happened, but volume has no direction of its own. The same spike can be exhaustion (a climax that ends a move) or continuation (a breakout that powers one). Context tells you which.

Exhaustion (climax) volume

Exhaustion volume comes at the end of an extended move, often at a level — a final flush of panic selling into support or a euphoric buying spike into resistance. The tells: it happens after a long directional run, at a wall or extreme, and price fails to make progress on the huge volume (often with absorption or delta divergence). It marks capitulation — the last participants getting in right before the reversal. Fade it.

Continuation (breakout) volume

Continuation volume comes at the start of a move, on a breakout through a level — range expansion with follow-through. The tells: it happens as price breaks and holds beyond a level, with price making clear progress on the volume, in a trending regime. It marks conviction entering — the move is beginning. Follow it.

Big volume with no price progress at an extreme = exhaustion, fade it. Big volume breaking a level with follow-through = continuation, follow it.

The deciding questions

Ask: where in the move (end vs. start), at what (an extreme vs. a break), and does price progress on the volume (no = exhaustion, yes = continuation)? The regime tilts it — positive gamma favors exhaustion/reversal reads, negative gamma favors continuation. Volume is context; where and how it spikes, plus price's response, is the read.