Abbreviations, Symbols or Expressions for Basic Machine Knitting
It would be nice if there was a universal standard machine knitting abbreviations list that would be applicable to all knitting machines. However, this is not the case. Each variety of knitting machine, each designer and each knitting machine publication has their own favorite set of abbreviations and symbols. Fortunately, most lists are very comparable, and usually each magazine or publication includes a page of abbreviations that are used within their media.
Abbreviations that I use when drafting knitting instruction patterns for the fashion industry or my cottage industry students and training programs.
And here we go again: I’m going to give you another set of abbreviations that I use when drafting knitting instruction patterns for the fashion industry or my cottage industry students and training programs. I will not include all the common abbreviations - or conversions between metric and English systems in this article, but I will include those that I frequently use, or, perhaps some “expressions” unique to production terms that you may not be familiar with.
I have included a category on this web site for knitting patterns that I have written for training purposes in the field of machine knitting that have been popular items for gifts and for sale. Hand knitters are searching for these basic patterns as well. Therefore, I am converting my machine knit patterns into hand knitting patterns and terminology. I will post them as they are completed.
Instructional patterns often get 'too wordy' and take up too much space, so it is a common practice to use abbreviations for the common terms used in pattern writing. The following is a table of machine knitting terms that I use in knitting machine patterns that I draft for my cottage industry training programs.
Table of Abbreviations, Symbols or Expressions for Basic Machine Knitting
| ABBREVIATION | MEANING OF ABBREVIATION |
| approx | approximately |
| AWP or UWP | Advanced (or Upper) Working Position, the needle position on some knitting machines used in patterning or when placing nds that you want to go from HP to WP |
| BB | back bed (passap term, this is ribber for other brands of knitting machines) |
| BO | bind off |
| Blk St | black strippers (passap term) |
| beg | beginning |
| BH | button hole |
| carr | carriage |
| CC | contrast color |
| cm | centimeter (metric system term) |
| Crochet chain | crochet chain stitch usually formed with the latch tool rather than a crochet hook |
| CO | cast on |
| COL | carriage on left |
| cont | continue |
| COR | carriage on right |
| C1 | color 1 (or 2, 3, etc.) |
| DB | double bed |
| dec | decrease |
| dir | direction |
| E | every x rows |
| ea | each |
| EN, or ER | every needle, or every row |
| EON, EOR, EOS | every other needle, every other row, every other stitch |
| # of ends | example: 2 ends of yarn: the number of strands of a specific yarn that you put together to come up with the weight or thickness that you wish to create to achieve the given stitch and row gauge |
| ex | example |
| F | finished edge that has no loops, dropped sts, etc. (production pattern term) |
| FB | front bed |
| FF | full fashion |
| FNR | full needle rib, every nd in wp on MB & RB with RHD |
| g | grams (metric system term) |
| G-bar | garter bar |
| HP | holding position (BX with pushers in rest position) |
| inc, + | increase |
| K, k | knit |
| K1 | knit one piece (or K2 , knit 2 pieces, etc.) or depending upon context: knit 1 stitch |
| KM | knitting machine |
| KWK | knit across, wrap the hole, knit back |
| L | left |
| lb | pound, which is equal to 16 ounces (oz) |
| LO | Latch off latch tool bind off (done on or done off the machine). |
| LTBO | latch tool bind off: a specific method for an elastic Bind Off procedure done on or done off the machine. |
| MB | Main Bed (Front bed on Passap) |
| MC or MY | Main Color or Main Yarn |
| mm | millimeter (s) |
| ndl/ndls or nd/nds | needle/ needles |
| NWP | non working position |
| O St | orange strippers (passap term) |
| O L | overlock or serge edge with a sewing machine |
| P, p | purl |
| patt | pattern (s) |
| Pr | prongs on a linker |
| PU | pick up |
| R/Rs | row/rows |
| RB | ribber bed (back bed on the passap) |
| RC or rc | row counter |
| R.C. | ravel chord |
| rem | remaining |
| rep | repeat |
| RHD | racking handle down (when using 2 beds, the nds are in a relationship whereas they fit in between each other when they move forward to receive new yarn to form a stitch) |
| RHU | racking handle up down (when using 2 beds, the nds are in a relationship whereas they are directly across from each other when they move forward to receive new yarn to form a stitch) |
| RP | rest position |
| Rt | right |
| SB | single bed |
| scrap off | Knit several rows with waste yarn, then remove the knitting from the machine. |
| SR | short row (a shaping technique for increasing or decreasing sts ~ see triangle symbols) |
| St S or T | stitch size or tension |
| st/sts | stitch/stitches |
| tog | together |
| WP | work position |
| WY | waste yarn |
| yd (s) | yards |
| # | number |
| # ____ | Ndl number that is on the edge of that particular shaping procedure. |
| RC000 | turn the row counter to 0 (zero) |
| X | On a pattern diagram means to mark that spot with a piece of contrast yarn as a visual aid for assembling |
| X | Within a shaping direction, it means the number of times a procedure is to be repeated |
| Scrap/ravel | Technique used for casting on. Cast on with scrap or waste yarn. Then knit one row with ravel cord or a type of yarn that acts like ravel cord. This acts as a separator between the scrap yarn and the main yarn. This is also used as a separator when knitting in a string. |
| Knitting in a string | Kniting several pieces of knit fabric that are separated by scrap/ravel cord or scrap yarn. The ravel cord in this case is a yarn that will pull out easily when separating the pieces |
| Stabilizers/Separator Threads | |
| mono | monofil |
| thr | thread |
| lyc | lycra® |
| el | elastic |
| Gr | grilon® |
 |
Symbols that denotes that you are to use the short row or graduation method of increasing or decreasing stitches, the knitting directions are placed in between the 2 triangles |
 |
Symbol on a production pattern. T3 means use stitch size 3, which should yield a stitch gauge of 7 stitches per inch and 12 rows per inch. |
| divide symbol CF | divide center front (usually at the neckline shaping) |
| divide symbol CB | divide center back (usually at the neckline or zipper shaping |
Also see Conversions Made Simple by Jeannie Merritt ~ A Three part Series of knitting machine knitting and hand knitting terminology. It is a comparision chart of defining hand knit terms and abbreviations with its translation into machine knit terms. This series can be found in Inknitters Magazine starting with Summer 2005, Vol.5 No.17. Part 2 is in Fall 2005 and Part 3 in Winter 2005.
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