English

Noun

skain ‎(plural skains)

1. Alternative form of skean
   • John Ebers

     Knauel, der, A Bottom or Clew of thread or of Yarn, a Hank, a Skain of Yarn or thread ^[1]

   • George Gregory

     The aim of the rope-maker is to unite the strings of a great number of fibres... This is done by twisting or twining them together... When the fibres are so disposed in a long skain, that their ends succeed each other along its length, without many of them meeting in one place; and this skain is twisted round... the friction on a fibre which we attempt to pull out may be more than its cohesion can overcome... Consequently, if we pull at this twisted skain, we shall not separate it by drawing one parcel out from among the rest, but the whole fibres will break; and if the distribution of the fibres has been a very equable, the skain will be nearly of the same strength in every part.^[2]

References

1. ↑ Ebers, John. The new and complete dictionary of the German and English languages ; Composed chiefly after the German dictionaries of Mr. Adelung and of Mr. Schwan publisher: Breitkpf, 1798
2. ↑ Gregory, George. A Dictionary of Arts and Sciences. publisher: I. Peirce and S. Etheridge, 1816