Crochet Terms and Abbreviations for Beginners

If you’re thinking about learning how to crochet, learning some of the crochet terms and abbreviations for beginners is a great place to start!

Crochet abbreviations are the short way to write out what crochet stitch you’re needing for the pattern you are making. You are going to find many patterns that will used abbreviations to save space and to make the pattern easier to read.

An example of an abbreviation would be where (SC) stands for single crochet. (DC) stands for double crochet. There are a lot more too. Goods news is the abbreviations are normally very easy and simple to follow for beginners.

Abbreviations are used in almost every part of a crochet pattern. It can be like learning another language. So learning some of the crochet terminology and abbreviations will help you have less confusion and begin the process of learning to crochet. Once you learn what the terms mean in a crochet pattern, you’ll be able to read them quite well.

If you already have a pattern in mind to make, that’s great! Patterns normally have a list of materials needed, and the list of abbreviations used either in the beginning or end. Abbreviations can be different depending on the designer so if you’re unsure, it’s just best to check the list they provide.

Pattern’s can be written in US terms or UK terms. This should be stated at the beginning of the pattern. The abbreviations are the typically the same, but the stitches are created different. I have personally made projects using both, and it can be quite confusing, especially for a beginner, so I would recommend picking one, and sticking with those terms.

Abbreviations (US Terms)

• beg– beginning; beginning of row
• ch(s)– chain(s)
• st(s)– stitch(es)
• rnd(s)– rounds
• rev- reverse
• ws- wrong side
• rs– right side
• sl st or ss– slip stitch
• sk– skip, for example you may skip a stitch or chain and work into the following one indicated by the pattern.
• sp– space
• yo– yarn over, used for almost all crochet stitches, you may not see this in every pattern but more often in tutorials 
• tog– together
• sc– single crochet, the most common and basic stitch used 
• hdc– half double crochet
• dc– double crochet
• tr– triple crochet
• rep– repeat
• FLO– front loop only
• BLO– back loop only
• INC– increase, putting two stitches in one
• DEC– decrease
• FO– finish off
• WIP– work in progress, not commonly used in pattern but when describing projects that have not been finished yet

Repeating Shorthand

Sometimes inside a pattern you will see the use of (), {}, or *, **. These symbols or shorthand abbreviations are used to tell you when stitches are repeated and how many times to repeat them.

There are many, many more abbreviations in crochet, but these are some of the basic crochet terms and abbreviations for beginners. Again, most patterns should have a list of these for you. However if they don’t, I hope this list can serve as a helpful resource for you.

I hope this post is useful to you on your journey on learning to crochet. Now let’s get to creating!