cotton ball
Americannoun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of cotton ball
First recorded in 1750–55
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.
Segura, the nurse, removed the tube from my arm and pressed a cotton ball to the needle prick.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 2, 2025
He’s just a crafty, ball-faking, footwork phenom with a touch as soft as a cotton ball.
From Seattle Times ● Mar. 22, 2023
The cleverest hack is to simply soak a cotton ball in your favorite essential oil, drop it in the bottom of your trash can under the liner, and voila!
From Salon ● Jun. 22, 2022
The material in the connective tissue gives it a loose consistency similar to a cotton ball that has been pulled apart.
From Textbooks ● Jun. 9, 2022
Large, light, cotton ball flakes gently sifted through the air, blanketing the campus in a kind of idyllic innocence.
From "Tradition" by Brendan Kiely
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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.