Ottoman

American  

[ot-uh-muhn] / ˈɒt ə mən /

adjective

1. of or relating to the Ottoman Empire.

2. of or relating to the lands, peoples, and possessions of the Ottoman Empire.

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noun

plural

Ottomans

1. a Turk.

2. a Turk of the family or tribe of Osman.

3. (lowercase) a cushioned footstool.

4. (lowercase) a low cushioned seat without back or arms.

5. (lowercase) a kind of divan or sofa, with or without a back.

6. (lowercase) a corded silk or rayon fabric with large cotton cord for filling.

ottoman ¹ British  

/ ˈɒtəmən /

noun

1. 1. a low padded seat, usually armless, sometimes in the form of a chest

   2. a cushioned footstool

2. a corded fabric

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Ottoman ² British  

/ ˈɒtəmən /

adjective

1. history of or relating to the Ottomans or the Ottoman Empire

2. denoting or relating to the Turkish language

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noun

1. a member of a Turkish people who invaded the Near East in the late 13th century

Other Word Forms

• Ottomanlike adjective

Etymology

Origin of Ottoman

1575–85; < French < Italian ottomano, after the founder of the empire ( Arabic ʿuthmān ); Ottoman defs. 5, 6, 7, 8 < French ottomane (feminine)

Explanation

Your dad's favorite cushioned spot to rest his feet can be referred to as an ottoman — it's also known as a hassock or a footstool. This word may conjure anything from a vast empire to a footstool — it's all the same word, ultimately from the Arabic personal name Othman (which loses a lot, soundwise, in translation). The puffy footstools known as ottomans were allegedly originally a component of said empire's comforts.

Example Sentences

The tiles were on a panel by the tomb of Ottoman Sultan Selim II in the garden of the Hagia Sophia.

From Barron's • Mar. 20, 2026

The first decades of his life were spent under palace arrest in Istanbul, meant to keep him from vying for power—as Ottoman princes did, bloodily, in centuries past.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 4, 2026

It was originally bought by Khalil Sherif Pasha, widely known as Khalil-Bey, an Ottoman statesman and diplomat posted in Paris and then Vienna.

From Barron's • Feb. 18, 2026

“We would like to be civil servants, soldiers, prosecutors…just like we were in Ottoman times.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 1, 2025

Also on the list are the punitive armies of Rome, the fecklessness of Byzantium, Ottoman indifference, and British gunboats.

From "Circumference" by Nicholas Nicastro