# pern

> English word · Noun · IPA /pɜː(ɹ)n/ · frequency rank #85,641

## Definitions
1. Part of a spinning wheel, a conical spool onto which the thread is wound from the spindle.

## Etymology
Presumably from a verb pern, a variant of preen, from Middle English prene; pernyng is read by some editors in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight (v. 611) and interpreted as the present participle of this verb, also reflected dialectally as pirn (“reel; bobbin”). See also pirl.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/pern