skein

1 of 2

noun

ˈskān 

1

or less commonly skean or skeane

ˈskān 

: a loosely coiled length of yarn or thread wound on a reel

2

: something suggesting the twists or coils of a skein : tangle

3

: a flock of wildfowl (such as geese or ducks) in flight

skein

2 of 2

verb

skeined; skeining; skeins

transitive verb

: to wind into skeins

skein yarn

Examples of skein in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Bird strikes are dangerous, and have resulted in many crashes, for example the Miracle on the Hudson in 2009 when an Airbus 320 ran into a skein of Canada geese and was forced to ditch in the Hudson river. —David Hambling, Forbes, 17 Jan. 2025

Acrylic yarn mini skeins: $22.99 For beginners, acrylic yarn is the perfect, affordable yarn to use for all your projects. —Christopher Murray, Fox News, 30 Mar. 2024

With her soaring vocals weaving around the bandura’s skein of resonant lines Krut evokes the seasonal cycle in her folkloric repertoire. —Andrew Gilbert, The Mercury News, 15 Jan. 2025

In the ’90s, the two artists collaborated on an installation in which a thick skein of synthetic black hair connected their grade school class portraits, taken in Toronto and Honolulu. —Jenny Wu, ARTnews.com, 6 Nov. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English skeyne, from Middle French (Picard) escagne, probably from Vulgar Latin *scamnia, from *scamniare to wind yarn, from *scamnium rack for holding bobbins, from Latin scamnum bench, stool — more at shambles

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

circa 1775, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

skein

noun

ˈskān

: a looped length of yarn or thread put up in a loose twist after it is taken from the reel