A stop loss and a stop order (e.g. a stop market or a stop limit order) are not the same thing, and while they are often used together, they are not interchangeable (i.e. they are not fungible).
Stop Losses and Stop Orders
A stop loss is an order (not an order type) that is used to exit a trade if the trade reaches its maximum acceptable loss. A stop order is an order type that can be used to enter or exit a trade in a specific manner (e.g. when you want the price to continue moving in the same direction after you have made a trade).
A stop loss uses a stop order (preferably a stop market order) because a stop order is the order type that works correctly as a stop loss (e.g. waiting until the stop loss price is reached, and then being processed and filled). For example, a long trade on the British Pound to US Dollar currency market (i.e. the GBP to USD forex market) at 1.6705, might have a stop loss at 1.6689 using a stop market order type, which would only be filled if the market traded at (or below) 1.6689.
A Stop Does Not Exist
Many traders mistakenly call a stop loss order a stop (e.g. they will say that they have made a long trade at 500.50, with a stop at 480.50), but there is no such thing as a stop. Traders that call a stop loss a stop, either do not know or understand the difference between a stop loss and a stop order, or they are being lazy (usually the former). Professional traders know and understand the difference between a stop loss and a stop order, and they are never lazy regarding trading, and therefore they never refer to a stop loss as a stop. If you are a trader that uses the term stop to refer to a stop loss, consider which group of traders that puts you in, because it is not the group that is making all the money.
