Pirn vs. Girn — What's the Difference?

A Pirn is a rod onto which weft thread is wound for use in weaving. Unlike a bobbin, it is fixed in place, and the thread is delivered off the end of the pirn rather than from the centre.

To complain.

A cone-shaped spool or bobbin on which thread or yarn is wound, used most often for weaving.

To snarl or grimace.

The amount of thread wound on a shuttle or reel.

(dialectal) To grimace; to snarl.

(transitive) To wind (yarn) onto a pirn, usually by means of a pirn winder.

To whinge, moan, complain.

A quill or reed on which thread or yarn is wound; a bobbin; also, the wound yarn on a weaver's shuttle; also, the reel of a fishing rod.

(intransitive) To make elaborate unnatural and distorted faces as a form of amusement or in a girning competition.

A vocalization similar to a cat's purring.

To grin.