• 12 parts
  • Checked September 2026

Parts of a Sweater

A crew-neck pullover from the front, then a cardigan and a turtleneck with raglan sleeves.

Parts of a Sweater

Name Date

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1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
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Write the name of each numbered part.Answer key

  1. Neckband
  2. Shoulder seam
  3. Armhole
  4. Sleeve
  5. Cuff
  6. Body
  7. Ribbed hem
  8. V-neck
  9. Button
  10. Button band
  11. Turtleneck
  12. Raglan sleeve

Drawn for this site on 2026-09-30 from plain geometry. Licence: own work.

Each numbered ring is a button. Use the arrow keys to move between them and Enter to choose. Names are read out in Study, and once a part is answered.

Next step Next: the parts of a shirt

All 12 parts on the diagram

Show the list

Pullover 7

  1. Neckband The neckband finishes the neck opening. This one is a crew neck: a round neck at the base of the throat with a rib knit band round it.
  2. Shoulder seam Joins the front of the sweater to the back. The seams leave the neck opening between them.
  3. Armhole The opening in the body that a sleeve is sewn into. It runs from the shoulder down to the underarm.
  4. Sleeve A sleeve covers the arm. Sweater sleeves can be full-length, three-quarter length or short.
  5. Cuff The cuff is the band at the wrist end of a sleeve. It is often knitted in ribbing, which pulls in so the edge fits closely.
  6. Body The body is the part of a sweater that covers the torso. It has a front and a back.
  7. Ribbed hem The hem is the bottom edge of the sweater. Ribbing is often used for sweater hems and for any edge that should fit closely.

Cardigan and turtleneck 5

  1. V-neck Formed by two diagonal lines from the shoulders. They meet on the chest to make a V shape.
  2. Button Buttons fasten the open front. A cardigan is a sweater whose open front closes with buttons or a zipper.
  3. Button band The buttons are sewn to the button band. The other front edge has a matching band with the buttonholes.
  4. Turtleneck A turtleneck is a high, close-fitting neck that turns back over itself.
  5. Raglan sleeve Extends in one piece to the neck. It leaves a diagonal seam from the underarm to the collarbone.

How this list was compiled: Every name checked on 2026-09-30, a name kept only where two independent sources use it: Wikipedia, text only: Sweater (pullover and cardigan, necklines, sleeve lengths, hems with ribbing), Cardigan (sweater), Neckline (crew neck, V-neck, polo neck or turtleneck), Ribbing (knitting) (cuffs and sweater hems), Raglan sleeve; Ann Budd, The Knitter's Handy Book of Sweater Patterns (Interweave, 2004), https://archive.org/details/knittershandyboo00budd (neckband, crewneck, V-neck, turtleneck, shoulder seam, armhole, sleeve, cuff, body, ribbing, button band and buttonhole band, raglan lines from underarm to neck); Knitting Step by Step, https://archive.org/details/knittingstepbyst0000unse (neckband, armhole, shoulder seams, button band, buttonhole band); Bragonier and Fisher, What's What: A Visual Glossary of the Physical World (1981), https://archive.org/details/whatswhatvisualg00brag (sweater: crew neck, turtleneck, V-neck, body, ribbed cuff, ribbed bottom, ribbing, cardigan); and for the wording ribbed hem, Mix and Match Knits, https://archive.org/details/mixmatchknitswea0000maas, and Knitting for Olive, https://archive.org/details/knittingforolive0000inte. The books were read through archive.org's full-text search. Licence: own work

The drawing: Drawn for this site on 2026-09-30 from plain geometry; no maker's pattern, nothing traced. Licence: own work

How it works

A sweater is a knitted body with two sleeves, finished with bands at the neck, the wrists and the bottom edge. The first drawing is a pullover; the second has a cardigan and a turtleneck.

Read the full guide

A pullover, then two more sweaters

Numbers 1 to 7 are on the pullover: the neckband, a shoulder seam, an armhole, a sleeve, a cuff, the body and the ribbed hem. Open the second drawing for 8 to 12. The cardigan has a V-neck, buttons and a button band. The last sweater has a turtleneck and raglan sleeves, which run up to the neck.

  • Ribbing is the stretchy knit of raised stripes. Look for it at the neck, the cuffs and the hem.
  • A pullover goes on over the head. A cardigan opens down the front.

Questions and answers

What are the parts of a sweater called?

The body, two sleeves, a neckband, two cuffs and a hem. Shoulder seams join the front to the back, and each sleeve is sewn into an armhole. A cardigan adds a button band down the front.

What is the bottom of a sweater called?

The hem. It is often knitted in ribbing, as the cuffs are. Ribbing pulls in, so it is used for edges that should fit closely.

What is the difference between a pullover and a cardigan?

A pullover does not open in front and goes on over the head. A cardigan's open front closes with buttons or a zipper.

What is a raglan sleeve?

A sleeve that extends in one piece all the way to the neck. Its seam runs on a slant from the underarm to the collarbone.

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