pm — Place marker (Abbreviation)

pm stands for "place marker" — an instruction to slip a small ring or locking marker onto the needle at a specific point, flagging that position for later reference. "K10, pm, k10" places a marker exactly between the tenth and eleventh stitches, a point the pattern will likely refer back to later (a seam line, a shaping point, the start of a new section).

Ring markers versus locking markers

A ring marker sits directly on the needle, slipped from the left needle to the right as you knit past it every row — simple, but it can only mark a point between two stitches, not a specific stitch itself. A locking marker (like a small safety pin) clips directly onto a specific stitch and stays there regardless of what row you're on — useful for flagging a single stitch to find again later, like a wrap point in short-row shaping, rather than a boundary between stitches.

Why marker placement is worth double-checking

Because a marker's position is what many later instructions ("dec 1 st before marker," "sm, k to next marker") depend on, placing it one stitch off from where the pattern actually intends throws off every subsequent instruction that references it — worth a quick recount immediately after placing a marker on a shaping row specifically, since that's exactly where marker position tends to matter most.

Where it shows up

Marking the start of a round, flagging seam lines for symmetrical shaping (raglan increases, for instance), and noting any other position a pattern needs to reference repeatedly rather than by counting stitches fresh each time.

Related abbreviations

• sm — slip marker, the instruction for moving past an already-placed marker on later rows
• m1l / m1r — increases commonly worked at a marker's position for symmetrical shaping

FAQ

Can multiple markers of different colors be used in the same project? Yes, and it's a common practical habit — using a distinct color for a round's start marker versus markers flagging shaping points makes it much easier to tell at a glance which marker means what, especially on a piece with several markers active at once.

Does removing a marker early cause a problem if it's no longer needed? Not if the pattern has genuinely finished referencing it — once a marker's purpose (a shaping point, a section boundary) is done, it can be removed; leaving unnecessary markers in place mainly just adds visual clutter rather than causing a structural issue.