Crochet patterns can be written in a number of different ways, most commonly you will find the 'word code' that can take a while to learn, plus can end up being written in a number of different ways by different designers, just to make things more confusing.
What does come in a more uniform manner is a crochet stitch diagram.
In this guide you will find the symbol, the UK and US name and abbreviation and a quick explanation on how to do each stitch. This is designed as a quick reference point, not necessarily as your first point of call for learning new stitches.
You can download a PDF version of this guide here.
Crochet Stitch Diagram Symbols
Basic Stitches
Symbol |
UK |
US |
How-To |
| yo - yarn over |
bring your yarn over your hook from the back over the top to the front. |
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ch - chain |
pull your yarn over through the loop on your hook. |
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| ch-sp - chain space |
the space formed by a chain. |
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| corner-sp - corner space |
the space on a square that creates a corner shape. |
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| rep - repeat |
repeat the given instructions the stated amount of times. |
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| sk - skip |
skip given number of stitches |
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sl st / ss - slip stitch |
- insert your hook into the stitch, yarn over and pull up a loop. Yarn over and pull through both loops on your hook. |
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dc - double crochet | sc - single crochet |
insert your hook into the stitch, yarn over and pull up a loop. Yarn over and pull through both loops on your hook. |
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htr - half-treble crochet | hdc - half-double crochet |
yarn over, insert your hook into the stitch, yarn over and pull up a loop. Yarn over and pull through 3 loops on your hook. |
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tr - treble crochet | dc - double crochet |
yarn over, insert your hook into the stitch, yarn over and pull up a loop. Yarn over and pull through 2 loops on your hook twice.
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dtr - double treble crochet | tr - treble/triple crochet |
yarn over twice, insert your hook into the stitch, yarn over and pull up a loop. Yarn over and pull through 2 loops on your hook 3 times. |
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ttr - triple treble crochet | dtr - double treble/triple crochet |
yarn over 3 times, insert your hook into the stitch, yarn over and pull up a loop. Yarn over and pull through 2 loops on your hook 4 times. |
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dc2tog - double crochet 2 together | sc2tog - single crochet 2 together |
insert your hook into the stitch, yarn over and pull up a loop. Insert into the next stitch, yarn over and pull up a loop. Yarn over and pull through all 3 loops on your hook. |
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tr2tog - treble crochet 2 together | dc2tog - double crochet 2 together |
yarn over, insert your hook into the stitch, yarn over and pull up a loop. Yarn over and pull through 2, insert your hook into the next st, yarn over, pull up a loop. Yarn over, pull through 2, twice. |
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blo - back loop only |
insert your hook through the middle of the top of the stitch, leaving the front loop unworked. |
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flo - front loop only |
insert your hook through the front loop, up through the middle of the top of the stitch, leaving the back loop unworked. |
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Common Special Stitches
Symbol |
UK |
US |
How-To |
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FP - front post (followed by normal st) |
insert hook around post of stitch from previous row, starting at the front to back, yo, pull up a loop *begin and complete as requested stitch. eg if you're doing a tr/dc, yo once before you go in. |
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BP - back post (followed by normal st) |
insert hook around post of stitch from previous row, starting at the back to front, yo, pull up a loop *begin and complete as requested stitch. eg if you're doing a tr/dc, yo once before you go in. |
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fcfpdtr - front-crossed front post double treble crochet | fcfptr - front-crossed front post treble crochet |
sk, FPdtr around next st, FPdtr around sk st working in front of the fabric. |
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bcfpdtr - back-crossed front post double treble crochet | bcfptr - front-crossed front post treble crochet |
sk, FPdtr around next st, FPdtr around sk st working in back of the fabric. |
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puff-st - puff stitch |
yo and pull up to the height of the 3ch. Insert hook into chain space and yo, pulling through up to the height of the stitch again. Do this 5 times, until you have 11 loops on your hook. yo and pull through all loops. yo and pull through loop to secure. |
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cluster-st - cluster stitch |
yo, insert hook in space, yo, draw up a loop, yo, draw through 2 loops. (2 loops left on hook) yo, insert hook back into same space, yo, draw up a loop, yo, draw through 2 loops. (3 loops left on hook) yo, insert hook back into same space, yo, draw up a loop, yo, draw through 2 loops. (4 loops left on hook) yo and draw through all 4 loops. |
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pop-st - popcorn stitch |
4 tr (dc) into the same st. Remove hook and put into the top of the first tr, then using the working loop, join to the first st. ch to secure st. |
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bobble-st - bobble stitch |
yo, insert hook in space, yo, draw up a loop, yo, draw through 2 loops. Repeat from * 5 times, until you have 6 loops left on your hook. yo and pull through all loops on your hook. Ch to seal the st. |
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