Crochet Abbreviations And Terms (US + UK)

Here you will find an extensive list of crochet abbreviations and terms, including both US and UK terms.

When you first read a crochet pattern you may think that it has been written in another language.

And it sort of has been – but it is a simple enough language to understand.

Patterns use abbreviations that are shortened ways of telling you what techniques to do.

Crochet Abbreviations Explained

For example, single crochet is abbreviated to sc and double crochet is abbreviated to dc.

The letters are often next to a number that will tell you how many stitches you should crochet.

For example, sc 6 sts means ‘single crochet 6 stitches‘.

This shorthand makes the patterns shorter and simpler for you to follow.

If the instructions were all written in full, then the patterns would be pages and pages long!

What Is The Difference Between The US and UK Crochet Terms?

Once you start to learn how to read crochet patterns and practice crochet techniques you will become more and more used to the shortened abbreviations.

If you see an abbreviation that you don’t understand, you can check the reference guide below (see the downloadable PDF at the bottom of this page).

Crocheters in the UK and the US use different terms such as ‘single crochet’ in the US will be ‘double crochet’ in the UK.

Apart from those listed below, the differences are small so you can use patterns from anywhere!

Related Post: How to read crochet patterns for beginners

Get Started – Crochet Abbreviations + Terms List

If you want to learn more about how to start crocheting, please visit this post –  How To Crochet For Beginners: Easy Complete Guide.

There you will find tutorials for the basic crochet stitches (single crochet, double crochet, triple crochet, etc).

The list below is a starter handy guide to general abbreviations and terms.

• There are links to video tutorials for some of the techniques below.
• Download an easy to print out PDF at the bottom of this page.
• Take a look at the general terms below to get started.

General

[ ] work instructions within brackets as many times as directed

( ) work instructions within parentheses as many times as directed

* repeat the instructions following the single asterisk as directed

** repeat instructions between asterisks as many times as directed or repeat from a given set of instructions

” inch(es)

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A

alt – alternate

approx – approximate

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B

beg – begin/beginning

bet – between

BL or blo – back loop(s)

bo – bobble

BP – back post

BPdc – back post double crochet

BPsc – back post single crochet

BPtc – back post treble crochet

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C

CA – color A

CB – color B

CC – contrasting color

ch – chain stitch (View tutorial here – how to start a crochet chain)

ch- – refers to chain or space previously made: e.g., ch-1 space

ch-sp – chain space

CL – cluster

cm – centimeter(s)

cont – continue

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D

dc – double crochet (View tutorial here – how to double crochet (dc) for beginners)

dc2tog – double crochet 2 stitches together

dtr – double treble

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F

FL – front loop(s)

foll – follow, follows, following

foundation chain – a group of chain stitches (View tutorial here – how to start a crochet chain)

FP – front post

FPdc – front post double crochet

FPsc – front post single crochet

FPtr – front post treble crochet

fsc – foundation single crochet

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G

g – gram

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H

hch – half double crochet

hdc – half double crochet

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I

inc – increase, increases, increasing

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L

lp(s) – loop(s)

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M

m – meter(s)

MC – main color

mm – millimeters

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O

oz – ounce(s)

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P

p – picot

pat(s) or patt – pattern(s)

pc – popcorn (View tutorial – how to crochet the popcorn stitch)

pm – place marker

prev – previous

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R

rem – remain, remaining

rep – repeat(s)

rnd(s) – round(s)

RS – right side

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S

sc – single crochet (View tutorial here – how to single crochet (SC))

sc dec – single crochet decrease (View tutorial here – how to make a single crochet decrease)

sc2tog – single crochet 2 stitches together

sk – skip

Sl st – slip stitch

sp(s) – space(s)

st(s) – stitch(es)

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T

tch or tch – turning chain

tbl – through back loop

tog – together

tr – treble crochet (View tutorial – How To Treble Crochet (TR))

trtr – triple treble crochet

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W

WS – wrong side

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Y

yd(s) – yard(s)

yoh – yarn over hook

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Download your Crochet Abbreviations and Terms (US + UK) PDF here – Crochet Abbreviations and Terms