Common Knitting Abbreviations Explained for Beginners
So many of you asked what my short forms mean. Here are the common knitting abbreviations I write at the start of every video, explained in plain words.
A lot of subscribers asked me, "Ma'am, we don't understand your short forms." I always write the abbreviations at the start of each video, but here they are all in one place. Once you know these, you can read almost any knitting pattern, not just mine.
The basics
- k: knit
- p: purl
- RS / WS: right side / wrong side of the work
- st / sts: stitch / stitches
- BO: bind off (cast off)
Increases
- yo: yarn over. Bring the yarn to the front to make a new loop. This makes a little eyelet (a jaali).
- kfb: knit into the front and then the back of the same stitch, turning 1 stitch into 2
- M1: make one, lifting the strand between stitches to make a new stitch
- M1L / M1R: make one that leans left, or make one that leans right
Decreases
- k2tog / p2tog: knit or purl 2 stitches together, making 2 into 1
- ssk: slip, slip, knit. Slip 2 stitches, then knit them together through the back loop
- sl1, k2tog, psso: slip 1, knit 2 together, pass the slipped stitch over. This turns 3 stitches into 1
Slipping and yarn position
When you slip a stitch (take it off without knitting it), the pattern tells you where the yarn should be:
- wyif: with yarn in front
- wyib: with yarn in back
Common pattern words
- rep: repeat
- rem: remaining
- tog: together
- alt: alternate
Cable and twist terms
- cn: cable needle
- LC / RC: left cable / right cable
- LT / RT: left twist / right twist
For twists I write how many stitches cross over how many. For example, a twist of one stitch to the right of one stitch, then one to the right of two, two to the right of three, and so on. Left twists are written the same way, just leaning the other direction.
- knitting abbreviations
- knitting terms
- beginner knitting
- how to read knitting patterns
- k2tog
- ssk
- cable knitting
- hand knitting
