80+ Symbols Used in Advanced Knitting Patterns

In advanced knitting patterns, symbols serve as a universal language, helping knitters convey complex stitches, techniques, and instructions in a compact, visually intuitive way.
Understanding these symbols is essential for anyone wanting to improve their knitting skills, unlocking a treasure trove of patterns that once seemed daunting.

In this post, I will list and explain the most commonly used symbols in advanced patterns and their meanings.

Table of Knitting Symbols

Basic symbols

Symbol	Abb	Explanation
	Co	Cast on
	Bo	Bind off
	M	Place marker
	Sm	Slip marker
		Move marker left
		Move marker right
		Short row right
		Short row left
		Turn to wrong side
		Turn to right side
	K	Knit
	P	Purl
	K tbl	Knit through the back loop
	P tbl	Purl through the back loop

	Sl wyib	Slip stitch with yarn in back
	Sl wyif	Slip stitch with yarn in front

Special Symbols

Symbol	Abb	Explanation
		Bunny ears dec Bunny ears dec
	N	Nupp
	B	Bobble

	K1b	Knit 1 below
	K2b	Knit 2 below
	K3b	Knit 3 below

		Cluster stitches
		Wrap stitches
		Yarn over, knit st/sts, pass yarn over over knitted st/sts

Yarn over symbols

Symbol	Abb	Explanation
	Yo	Yarn over

	Yo x2	Yarn over twice
	Yo x3	Yarn over three times
	Kyok	Knit one, yarn over, knit one in the same stitch
	Pyop	Purl 1, yarn over, purl 1 in the same stitch

Increase Symbols

Symbol	Abb	Explanation
	M1	Make one stitch (right/left)
	M1p	Make one purl-wide (right/left)
	LLI	Left lifted increase
	RLI	Right lifted increase
	LLIp	Left lifted increase (purled)
	RLIp	Right lifted increase (purled)
	incto2	- (knit 1, purl 1) in one stitch - (purl 1, knit 1) in one stitch
	incto2	- (knit 1, purl 1) in one stitch - (purl 1, knit 1) in one stitch
	incto3	Increase 1 to 3
	incto3	Increase 1 to 3
	incto4	Increase 1 to 4
	incto5	Increase 1 to 5

Decrease Symbols

Symbol	Abb	Explanation
	Ssk	Slip slip knit
	K2tog	Knit two stitches together
	Twisted ssk	Twisted slip slip knit
	Twisted k2tog	Twisted knit two stitches together
	Ssp	Slip slip purl
	P2tog	Purl two stitches together
	Sssk Sk2p	Slip slip slip knit Slip 1, knit 2 together, pass slipped stitch over
	K3tog	Knit three stitches together
	Sssp	Slip slip slip purl
	P3tog	Purl three stitches together
	S2kp	Slip two stitches knitwise, knit one, pass slipped stitches over

		Ssk nupp
		K2tog nupp

	sl2 p1 p2sso	Slip 2 purl 1 pass 2 slipped stitches over
	K4tog	Knit 4 together
	K5tog	Knit 5 together
	K7tog	Knit 7 together

Gathered Symbols

Symbol	Abb	Explanation
	2-2	2 into 2 gathered
	3-3	3 into 3 gathered
	5-5	5 into 5 gathered
	2-6	2 into 6 gathered
	5-7	5 into 7 gathered
	7-3	7 into 3 gathered

	2-2 tbl	2 into 2 gathered through the back loop
	3-2 tbl	3 into 2 gathered through the back loop
	3-3 tbl	3 into 3 gathered through the back loop
	3-4 tbl	3 into 4 gathered through the back loop
	5-2 tbl	5 into 2 gathered through the back loop
	3-5 tbl	3 into 5 gathered through the back loop
	5-3 tbl	5 into 3 gathered through the back loop
	5-7 tbl	5 into 7 gathered through the back loop

Cable Symbols

Symbol	Abbreviation
	1/1 Left cross
	1/1 Right cross
	1/1 Left purl cross
	1/1 Right purl cross
	2/2 Left cross
	2/2 Right cross
	2/2 Left purl cross
	2/2 Right purl cross
	2/1/2 Left cross
	2/1/2 Right cross
	3/3 Left cross
	3/3 Right cross
	3/3 Left purl cross
	3/3 Right purl cross