What does yarn mean?
Word: Yarn
Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: Yarn means thread made by twisting fibres such as wool or cotton, used for knitting or weaving. It can also mean a long story, often one that is not quite true.
Synonyms: thread, wool
How do you spell yarn?
Syllables: yarn
Tricky part: Yarn and yawn differ by just one letter, so a slip of the pen can change the word. Check that the third letter is r.
Watch out for: yawrn, yarne
Memory tip: Picture a ball of yarn rolling across the floor: r for rolling sits in the middle, where yawn has its w.
Idioms and Phrases
- spin a yarn: to tell a long story, often one that is made up Example: "Grandpa likes to spin a yarn about the giant fish he nearly caught."
Yarn in a sentence
Example 1: Grandma bought three balls of blue yarn to knit me a sweater.
Example 2: The weaver in Varanasi worked silk yarn into a beautiful scarf.
Example 3: Our kitten played with a loose end of yarn until it was tangled.
Fun Fact
Cotton yarn is made by twisting short fibres together, a job once done by hand on the spinning wheel until machines took it over about 250 years ago.
Practise the CREST Way
Word Connection
Choose the synonym of the word:
yarn
a) needle
b) strand
c) button
d) pattern
Show answer
b) strand. A strand is a single thread; needles, buttons and patterns are only used with yarn.
Spell-o-Spell
Choose the incorrectly spelt word:
a) spindle
b) embroidry
c) yarn
d) crochet
Show answer
b) embroidry. Embroidery has an e between the d and the r.
Word Cookie
Find the extra letter in the word:
yarnn
a) y
b) n
c) a
d) r
Show answer
b) n. The word ends in a single n, like torn and born.
Word Cookie
Find the misspelt word in the sentence:
For the craft fair, Tara wound some red yaarn round a cardboard star.
a) craft
b) wound
c) yaarn
d) cardboard
Show answer
c) yaarn. Only one a sits before the r, as in car and star.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Which of these could you make with yarn?
a) a woolly scarf
b) a clay pot
c) a wooden stool
d) a glass bowl
Show answer
a) a woolly scarf
2. Grandpa loves to spin a yarn. Which of these is most likely one of his yarns?
a) a note about tomorrow's weather
b) a list of things to buy at the market
c) the times of the trains to London
d) a tale about a cow that could sing
Show answer
d) a tale about a cow that could sing
