Crochet for Beginners: Basic Terminology

Crochet like any other craft or art form has its own language. Patterns use abbreviations to make the them easier to read and understand. I have prepared a list of basic terminology you’ll need to understand the wonderful world of crochet. As you become more familiar with crochet you’ll learn new terminology, but for now let’s go over the basic terms and meanings. 

As your crochet skills advance, you'll find that you probably won't even need to refer to a list anymore. Until then, this guide will get you started on the basics. I’ve also prepared a printable pdf for your convenience, so you may just easily download and save it. Enjoy!

General terms

alt – alternate

approx – approximately

beg – beginning

bet – between

cont – continue

ch sp – chain space

foll – following

lp – loop

prev- previous

rem – remaining

rep – repeat

rnd – round

ws – wrong side

rs – right side

The Directions

bl/blo – back loop

fl/flo – front loop

bp – back post

dec – decrease

inc – increase

pm – place marker

sk – skip

yo/yoh – yarn over/hook

The Stitches

ch – chain stitch

sl st – slip stitch

sc – single crochet

hdc – half double crochet

dc – double crochet

tc – treble/triple crochet

dtr -double treble crochet

sh – shell

tch – turning chain

The Stitch Modifiers

Bp – back post

FP – front post

ch chain stitch

e – extended

cl – cluster

2tog – crochet 2 stitches together (decrease)

pc – popcorn stitch

The Measurements

” or in – inch

cm – centimeter

g – gram

m – meter

mm – millimeter

oz -ounce

yd – yard

The Tools

cc-contrast color mc-main color m-marker

The special Tunisian Crochet Terms

FwP – forward pass

RetP – return pass

tfs – Tunisian full stitch

tks – Tunisian knit stitch

tps – Tunisian purl stitch

trs – Tunisian reverse stitch

tss – Tunisian simple stitch

ttw – Tunisian twisted

Pattern Repeats

[ ] Work instructions in the brackets the appropriate number of times called for by your pattern

( ) Work instructions in parenthesis the appropriate number of times called for by your pattern

* Denotes the beginning of a pattern repeat.

* * Work the instructions between the asterisks as a pattern repeat as many times as called for by your pattern.

Crochet Slang

Like all hobbies and art forms crochet also has its own set of slang terms. You’ll probably see these on social media sites and hear them when crocheters are discussing their craft. By the way, tell me if you have already heard some of these before!

CAL – Crochet along; an event where everyone works on the same project, usually held online

Design Element – another term for mistake

FOTH – Fresh off the hook

Frog or Frogging – to rip out stitches 

HOTH – Hot off the hook

LYS – Local yarn store

Scrumble – A form of freeform crochet in which you use different types of yarn

Stash – Your yarn collection

UFO – Unfinished object

WIM – Work in mind

WIP – Works in progress

Yarn Cake – When you use a ball winder you end up with balls of yarn which resemble small cakes. Alternatively, you may use the simple guide of winding yarn by hand that I’ve shared here: https://lifehack.craftorator.com/80-how-to-wind-a-yarn-ball-without-special-equipment.html

If you’ve found this chart helpful, please let me know! And next time we’ll move onto reading and understanding patterns together with basic crochet stitches. Have a great day!