Knitting Abbreviation List
I’ve been feeling nostalgic lately for the days when I first started knitting. At the risk of sounding overdramatic, it felt less like learning a new skill and more like I had been handed a key that unlocked a whole new universe. Infinite possibilities swam inside my head: I could make a scarf, but what if I could make it striped? What if all my Christmas gifts this year could be hand made? What if I could make hats with alpaca rather than wool...what does alpaca even feel like!?
This is why we love teaching and working with beginner knitters. It’s just so fun to be on that creative journey. But, for all the excitement, there’s some definite frustration as well. Fixing mistakes, in the beginning, is excruciating. Unraveling a project for the third time stings. And trying to read knitting patterns can feel like struggling to learn a new language.
I have some fond memories of Google searching knitting abbreviations for hours on end, but I’m pretty sure I would have had fonder memories of having a beautiful and comprehensive PDF of the terms taped to my refrigerator and folded neatly into my knitting bag. So, friends, we’ve made one for you!
Generally, special abbreviations are given at the beginning of a pattern. (There will be special abbreviations in a pattern which you may not find on this list. These definitions reflect the U.S. knitting terminology.)
Want to print this? Click here to download the file.
beg: beginning
BO – bind off
BOR - beginning of round
BM - before marker
CC – contrasting color
CDD - centered double decrease: slip 2 stitches as if to knit 2 together, knit 1, pass 2 slipped stitches over [2 stitches decreased]
CO - cast on
CN(s) - cable needle(s)
dec(s) – decrease(s)
dpn(s) – double-pointed needle(s)
inc(s) – increase(s)
k – knit
kfb – knit 1 front and back [1 stitch increased]
ktbl – knit 1 through the back loop
k2tog(-tbl)– knit 2 stitches together (through back loops) [1 stitch decreased]
k3tog(-tbl) - knit 3 stitches together (through back loops) [2 stitches decreased]
LH: left hand
m – marker
m1L(p) – make 1 left: Insert your left needle from front to back under the bar between the stitch you just knit and the last stitch. Pick up this stitch and knit (purl) as normal. [1 stitch increased]
m1R(p) – make 1 right: Insert your left needle from back to front under the bar between the stitch you just knit and the last stitch. Pick up this stitch and knit (purl) as normal. [1 stitch increased]
mc – main color
p – purl
p2tog – purl 2 stitches together [1 stitch decreased]
p3tog - purl 3 stitches together [2 stitches decreased]
ptbl - purl 1 through back loop
pfb – purl 1 front and back [1 stitch increased]
pm – place marker
psso – pass slipped stitches over number of stitches indicated in the pattern
rep / rpt– repeat
rev – reverse
RH – right hand
rm - remove marker
rnd(s) - round(s)
RS – right side
s2kp2 – slip 1 stitch knitwise, slip 1 stitch knitwise, knit 1, pass 2 slipped stitches over knitted stitch [2 stitches decreased]
skp – slip 1 stitch knitwise, knit 1 stitch, pass slipped stitch over knitted stitch [1 stitch decreased]
sl / sl1k / sl1p – slip 1 stitch /slip 1 stitch knitwise/ slip 1 stitch purlwise
sm – slip marker
ssk – Slip, slip, knit: slip 1 stitch knitwise, slip 1 stitch knitwise, place left needle through front of 2 stitches, knit 2 stitches together through back loop [1 stitch decreased]
ssp – Slip, slip, purl: slip 1 stitch knitwise, slip 1 stitch knitwise, pass the 2 stitches back to the left needle, purl the 2 stitches together through the back loops [1 stitch decreased]
sssk – Slip, slip, slip, knit: slip 1 stitch knitwise, slip 1 stitch knitwise, slip 1 stitch knitwise, knit the 3 stitches together [2 stitches decreased]
sssp – Slip, slip, slip, purl: slip 1 stitch knitwise, slip 1 stitch knitwise, slip 1 stitch knitwise, pass the 3 stitches back to the left needle, purl the 3 stitches through the back loops [2 stitches decreased]
st(s)– stitch(es)
St st: stockinette stitch
tbl – through the back loop
tog – together
WS – wrong side
wyib – with yarn in back
wyif – with yarn in front
W&T: wrap and turn
yo – yarn over
yo2 – yarn over twice
[ ] - repeat the instructions within the brackets the number of times states
* -- * - repeat from * to *
