I’ve put together a handy guide to translate crochet terminology between U.K. and USA terms. Although I am from the UK, like many others I prefer US crochet terminology. Therefore, I also write my patterns using US terminology. However, this can be a little confusing at first but patterns can be easily translated just by learning a few simple changes. As you can see on the chart below, the stitches are exactly the same, they are just called by a different name. For example, a US single crochet is called a double crochet in the U.K. In other words it is exactly the same stitch, just known by a different name.
Cheat Sheet – Translate Crochet Terminology
| USA | UK |
|---|---|
| Gauge | Tension |
| sl st – slip stitch | ss – slip stitch |
| sc – single crochet | dc – double crochet |
| hdc – half double crochet | htc – half treble crochet |
| dc – double crochet | tr – treble crochet |
| tr – treble crochet | dtr – double treble crochet |
| dtr – double treble crochet | trtr – triple treble |
| sk – skip | ms – miss |
| yo – yarn over | Yoh – yarn over |
Crochet hook & Yarn sizes
So, the abbreviations shown in the chart above are the only ones which change between U.K. and USA terms, you can find more abbreviations here. You might also find translations for hook size and yarn size useful too!
