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Synonyms

cola

1 American  
[koh-luh] / ˈkoʊ lə /

noun

  1. a carbonated soft drink containing an extract made from kola nuts or an artificial imitation, together with sweeteners and other flavorings.

cola 2 American  
[koh-luh] / ˈkoʊ lə /

noun

  1. a plural of colon.

cola 3 American  
[koh-luh] / ˈkoʊ lə /

noun

  1. a plural of colon.

COLA 4 American  
[koh-luh] / ˈkoʊ lə /

noun

  1. cost-of-living adjustment: an automatic increase in wages, Social Security, pensions, etc., to cover the rising cost of living due to inflation.

COLA 1 British  

abbreviation

  1. cost of living adjustment: an increase in benefit payments according to the rate of inflation

  2. cost of living allowance: extra money paid to workers in areas where the cost of living is more expensive

"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
cola 2 British  
/ ˈkəʊlə /

noun

  1. either of two tropical sterculiaceous trees, Cola nitida or C. acuminata, widely cultivated in tropical regions for their seeds See cola nut

  2. a sweet carbonated drink flavoured with cola nuts

"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
cola 3 British  
/ ˈkəʊlə /

noun

  1. a plural of colon 1 colon 2

"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

Etymology

Origin of cola

First recorded in 1885–90; spelling variant of kola, extracted from the trademark names of such drinks, as Coca-Cola, Pepsi-Cola, etc.

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Festival del Libro del Los Angeles Times, abarrotando las mesas redondas y haciendo cola para ver a sus autores favoritos y a los invitados famosos.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 19, 2026

He likened it to the cola wars of the 1980s—but warned it may not be a winning strategy.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 14, 2025

As for Coca-Cola’s rivals, both PepsiCo and Dr. Pepper have been selling their versions of cola sweetened with cane sugar in the U.S. since 2009.

From Salon • Jul. 23, 2025

As well as directing Super Size Me, Spurlock was the film’s star and guinea pig as he ate dozens of Big Macs and Chicken McNuggets and drank gallons of cola.

From BBC • May 24, 2024

We have Green lime And dark cola, And we have An umbrella of five colors.

From "Neighborhood Odes" by Gary Soto

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.