yarn

C2 Topic:General Vocabulary

US /jɑɹn/ UK /jɑːn/ See IPA manual

Freq #16515

Meanings

1

noun
A story, a tale, especially one that is incredible.

Spin a yarn.
2

verb
To tell a story or stories, especially one that is lengthy or unlikely to be true.

"He yarns good," said Tom Platt. "T'other night he told us abaout a kid of his own size steerin' a cunnin' little rig an' four ponies up an' down Toledo, Ohio, I think 'twas, an' givin' suppers to a crowd o' sim'lar kids. Cur'us kind o' fairy-tale, but blame interestin'. He knows scores of 'em.".
3

noun
a fine cord of twisted fibers (of cotton or silk or wool or nylon etc.) used in sewing and weaving
4

noun
the act of giving an account describing incidents or a course of events

Verb forms

Verb forms are not available for this word yet.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · a story, a tale, especially... story tale

3 noun · a fine cord of twisted... thread

4 noun · the act of giving an... narration recital

Word family

Derived forms yarn-beamyarn-spinneryarnoveryarnwindle

Related forms hank thread twine

Appears in

Phrases (1)

See all

rope yarn
the individual strands used to make a rope

Noun + noun

Idioms (1)

See all

spin a yarn
to tell an entertaining story that may be lengthy, imaginative, or exaggerated

Etymology

From Middle English yarne, ȝern, yarn, from the Old English ġearn (“yarn, spun wool”), from Proto-West Germanic *garn, from Proto-Germanic *garną (“yarn”), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰorn-, *ǵʰerH- (“tharm, guts, intestines”). Cognates Akin to West Frisian jern, Dutch garen (“yarn”), German Garn (“yarn”), Danish garn, Swedish garn (“yarn, thread”), Icelandic garn (“yarn”), Latin hernia (“rupture”), Ancient Greek χορδή (khordḗ, “string”), Sanskrit हिर (hira, “band”). Compare also the obsolete doublet garn.

Topics

General Vocabulary

External links

# yarn

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2
**Part of speech:** noun, verb
**IPA (US):** /jɑɹn/
**IPA (UK):** /jɑːn/
**Frequency rank:** 16515

## Meanings
1. A story, a tale, especially one that is incredible.
2. To tell a story or stories, especially one that is lengthy or unlikely to be true.
3. a fine cord of twisted fibers (of cotton or silk or wool or nylon etc.) used in sewing and weaving
4. the act of giving an account describing incidents or a course of events

## Examples
- Spin a yarn.
- "He yarns good," said Tom Platt. "T'other night he told us abaout a kid of his own size steerin' a cunnin' little rig an' four ponies up an' down Toledo, Ohio, I think 'twas, an' givin' suppers to a crowd o' sim'lar kids. Cur'us kind o' fairy-tale, but blame interestin'. He knows scores of 'em.".

## Derived Forms
- yarn-beam
- yarn-spinner
- yarnover
- yarnwindle

## Related Forms
- hank
- thread
- twine

## Etymology
From Middle English yarne, ȝern, yarn, from the Old English ġearn (“yarn, spun wool”), from Proto-West Germanic *garn, from Proto-Germanic *garną (“yarn”), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰorn-, *ǵʰerH- (“tharm, guts, intestines”). Cognates Akin to West Frisian jern, Dutch garen (“yarn”), German Garn (“yarn”), Danish garn, Swedish garn (“yarn, thread”), Icelandic garn (“yarn”), Latin hernia (“rupture”), Ancient Greek χορδή (khordḗ, “string”), Sanskrit हिर (hira, “band”). Compare also the obsolete doublet garn.

## Topics
- General Vocabulary

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