cotton

[ kot-n ]
See synonyms for cotton on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. a soft, white, downy substance consisting of the hairs or fibers attached to the seeds of plants belonging to the genus Gossypium, of the mallow family, used in making fabrics, thread, wadding, etc.

  2. the plant itself, having spreading branches and broad, lobed leaves.

  1. such plants collectively as a cultivated crop.

  2. cloth, thread, a garment, etc., of cotton.

  3. any soft, downy substance resembling cotton, but growing on other plants.

verb (used without object)
  1. Informal. to get along; to agree (usually in the negative and followed by with): She didn't cotton with hypocrites.I don't cotton with conventional wisdom on this.

  2. Obsolete. to prosper or succeed.

Verb Phrases
  1. cotton (on) to, Informal.

    • to come to a full understanding of; grasp or realize: Once you cotton on to this principle, you see examples of it everywhere. Eventually both sets of parents cottoned on to the fact that the kids were lying about “studying” together.

    • to become fond of; begin to like: I cottoned to the new girl right away when I saw she knew how to muck out a stall.

    • to approve of; agree with: Some organic gardeners freeze the insects in a container and then put them out for the birds, but your kids may not cotton to this idea.

Origin of cotton

1
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English cotoun, cot(e)in, from Old French coton, from Arabic quṭun, quṭn

Other words from cotton

  • half-cot·ton, adjective
  • sem·i·cot·ton, noun
  • un·cot·toned, adjective

Words Nearby cotton

Other definitions for Cotton (2 of 2)

Cotton
[ kot-n ]

noun
  1. John, 1584–1652, U.S. clergyman, colonist, and author (grandfather of Cotton Mather).

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use cotton in a sentence

  • This would in any event have depressed prices of cotton, even under ordinary conditions.

    Readings in Money and Banking | Chester Arthur Phillips
  • cotton exchanges reopened on November 16, and stock exchanges opened for restricted trading shortly thereafter.

    Readings in Money and Banking | Chester Arthur Phillips
  • When in the city they wore a rough felt conical hat and dark blue cotton robe.

    Our Little Korean Cousin | H. Lee M. Pike
  • There was no finery in her wardrobe, a few neat cotton gowns for summer wear, and homespun for the winter—that was all.

    The World Before Them | Susanna Moodie
  • He's very tall an' gran', an' w'ars fine close, an' han's is white as a cotton bat, but his eyes doan set right in his head.

    The Cromptons | Mary J. Holmes

British Dictionary definitions for cotton (1 of 2)

cotton

/ (ˈkɒtən) /


noun
  1. any of various herbaceous plants and shrubs of the malvaceous genus Gossypium, such as sea-island cotton, cultivated in warm climates for the fibre surrounding the seeds and the oil within the seeds: See also sea-island cotton

  2. the soft white downy fibre of these plants: used to manufacture textiles

  1. cotton plants collectively, as a cultivated crop

    • a cloth or thread made from cotton fibres

    • (as modifier): a cotton dress

  2. any substance, such as kapok (silk cotton), resembling cotton but obtained from other plants

Origin of cotton

1
C14: from Old French coton, from Arabic dialect qutun, from Arabic qutn

Derived forms of cotton

  • cottony, adjective

British Dictionary definitions for Cotton (2 of 2)

Cotton

/ (ˈkɒtən) /


noun
  1. Sir Henry. 1907–87, English golfer: three times winner of the British Open (1934, 1937, 1948)

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012