What does it mean to knit a cable?

Knitting a cable means crossing one set of stitches over another. This is also called cabling. The most common cables are standard and rope. These techniques cross stitches predictably over a single column of other stitches.

To make a cable, the knitter transfers an even number of stitches to a third needle, called the cable needle. She then knits the stitches in a different sequence. The knitter works the cable on the project's right side rows. The row where stitches cross over each other is called the turning row. The knitter creates several plain rows between each turning row. Cable knitting creates a garment that is more dense and less flexible than a garment made with regular knitting.