English abbreviation · Crochet
What does htr mean in crochet?
htr means half treble crochet.
In French: demi-bride
How to work it
htr is the British name for the half treble: the stitch an American pattern calls half double crochet (hdc) and a French pattern calls demi-bride (db). It sits between the British double crochet, the shortest working stitch, and the British treble.
Yarn over, insert the hook into the stitch, yarn over and pull up a loop: there are three loops on the hook. Yarn over once more and pull through all three loops at once. That single last pull is what makes it a half stitch.
It gives a fabric that is firmer than trebles and grows faster than double crochets, which is why it is common in blankets, hats and cardigans.
In a pattern
Row 2: ch 2, htr in each st across, turn (18)
In “Row 2: ch 2, htr in each st across, turn (18)”, “ch 2” is the turning chain that lifts the hook to the height of a half treble. “htr in each st across” means one half treble in every stitch of the previous row, to the end. “turn” means you turn the work before the next row, and “(18)” is the stitch count you should have at the end of the row. Whether the turning chain counts as a stitch is set by the pattern’s notes; the count in brackets lets you check.
US or UK?
htr only exists in British notation. An American pattern writes the same stitch “hdc”, and a French pattern “db” or “demi-bride”. If you meet htr, the whole pattern is in British terms: its “dc” is an American single crochet and its “tr” an American double crochet. The US ↔ UK converter rewrites the whole pattern in the other convention.
Common mistakes
- Reading the rest of the pattern in American terms. Once you have seen htr, every dc and tr in the same pattern is British; working them as American stitches makes the piece taller and wider than intended.
- Pulling through two loops, then two again. That is a treble; for a half treble, the last yarn over goes through all three loops together.
A tip
If a pattern doesn’t say which convention it uses, look for htr or trtr: they only exist in British notation. One occurrence is enough to settle the question for the whole pattern.
Frequently asked questions
Is htr the same as hdc?
Yes. htr (UK half treble) and hdc (US half double crochet) are the same stitch, worked the same way; only the name changes with the convention.
How many chains does a row of htr start with?
Usually 2, the height of the stitch. Some patterns count them as the first stitch of the row, others don’t: the notes or the stitch count in brackets tell you which.
British notation
“htr” only exists in British notation. A US pattern writes “hdc” for this stitch.
Try it with a row from your pattern
Here is a row that uses it. Replace it with a row from your pattern: every abbreviation the reader knows is underlined, and its meaning shows on hover.
Row 2: ch 2, htr in each st across, turn (18)