Knitting terminology

Standard Yarn Weights

Name	Ply (UK, NZ, AU)	Wraps per inch	Knit gauge (4 in / 10 cm)	Yarnstandards.com
Thread				0 : Lace
Cobweb	1 ply			0 : Lace
Lace	2 ply		32-34 stitches	0 : Lace
Light Fingering	3 ply		32 stitches	0 : Lace
Fingering	4 ply	14 wpi	28 stitches	1 : Super Fine
Sport	5 ply	12 wpi	24-26 stitches	2 : Fine
DK	8 ply	11 wpi	22 stitches	3 : Light
Worsted	10 ply	9 wpi	20 stitches	4 : Medium
Aran	10 ply	8 wpi	18 stitches	4 : Medium
Bulky	12 ply	7 wpi	14-15 stitches	5 : Bulky
Super Bulky		5-6 wpi	8-12 stitches	6 : Super Bulky

Source: Ravelry

Needle sizes

US	UK	US / UK Metric	European Metric	Older US system
8/0	24	.5 mm	.5 mm
6/0	22	.75 mm	.75 mm
	20		.875 mm
5/0	19	1.0 mm	1.0 mm	18 (steel dpn)
			1.125 mm	17 (steel dpn)
4/0	18	1.25 mm	1.25 mm	16 (steel dpn)
0	17	1.5 mm	1.5 mm	15 (steel dpn)
	16		1.625 mm
0	15	1.75 mm	1.75 mm	14 (steel dpn)
0	14	2 mm	2 mm	0 (standard needles) 13 (steel dpn)
1		2.25 mm	2.25 mm	12 (steel dpn)
1	13	2.5 mm	2.5 mm	1 (standard needles)
2	12	2.75 mm	2.75 mm	2 (standard needles) 11 (steel dpn)
2	11	3 mm	3 mm	3 (standard needles) 10 (steel dpn)
3	10	3.25 mm	3.5 mm
4		3.5 mm	3.5 mm	4 (standard needles) 9 (steel dpn)
5	9	3.75 mm	3.75 mm	5 (standard needles) 8 (steel dpn)
6	8	4 mm	4 mm
		4.25 mm	4.25 mm	6 (standard needles)
7	7	4.5 mm	4.5 mm
		4.75 mm	4.75 mm	7 (standard needles)
8	6	5 mm	5 mm	8 (standard needles)
		5.25 mm	5.25 mm	9 (standard needles)
9	5	5.5 mm	5.5 mm
		5.75 mm	5.75 mm	10 (standard needles)
10	4	6 mm	6 mm
10 1/2	3	6.5 mm	6.5 mm	10 1/2 (standard needles)
	2	7 mm	7 mm
	1	7.5 mm	7.5 mm
11	0	8 mm	8 mm
13	0	9 mm	9 mm
15	0	10 mm	10 mm
17			12.5 mm
18			14 mm
19			15.5 mm
35			19 mm
50			25 mm

Source: Cyberseams

UK knitting abbreviations

0 No stitches, times or rows • pm place marker – No stitches times or rows for that size • p2tog purl two stitches together • alt alternate • prev previous • approx approximately • psso pass slipped stitch over • beg beginning • pwise purlwise • bet between • rem remaining • circ circular needles • rep repeat • cm centimetres • rev st st reverse stocking stitch • cn cable needle • rs right side • cont continue • skpo slip 1, knit 1, pass slipped stitch over • dec decrease • sl 1 slip one stitch • dpn double pointed needles • ssp one by one, slip the next two stitches knitwise. Put your left needle through the front loops of both slipped stitches and knit them together. • foll following • st(s)stitch(es) • inc increase • st st Right side knit, wrong side purl • k knit • tbl through back loop • kfb knit into front and back of next stitch • ws wrong side • k2tog knit two together • wyib with yarn in back • kwise knitwise • wyif with yarn in front • lp loop • yb yarn back • m1 make one stitch by picking up the horizontal loopbefore the next stitch and knitting into the back of it • yf yarn forward • m1p make one stitch by picking up the horizontal loopbefore the next stitch and purling into the back of it • yon yarn over needle, (between a purl and a knit stitch) • meas measure • yrn yarn round needle (between purls sts and betwen a knit and a purl stitch • mm milimetres * repeat the instructions between tha asterisks as often as instructed • N1(2,3) Needle 1(2,3) • ( ) work instructions insde the brackets as many times as instructed • p purl

Source: Wendy Poole

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