cottage

American  

[kot-ij] / ˈkɒt ɪdʒ /

noun

cottages plural

1. a small house, usually of only one story.

2. a small, modest house at a lake, mountain resort, etc., owned or rented as a vacation home.

3. one of a group of small, separate houses, as for patients at a hospital, guests at a hotel, or students at a boarding school.

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cottage British  

/ ˈkɒtɪdʒ /

noun

1. a small simple house, esp in a rural area

2. a small house in the country or at a resort, used for holiday purposes

3. one of several housing units, as at a hospital, for accommodating people in groups

4. slang a public lavatory

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• cottaged
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• cottages
  plural

Etymology

Origin of cottage

1350–1400; Middle English cotage. See cot ², -age; compare Medieval Latin cotagium, apparently < Anglo-French

Explanation

A cottage is a small house, particularly a traditional or old-fashioned house, or one that is used seasonally. Your family might rent a cottage near the beach every summer. In the US, a cottage typically has only one story, while in Canada a house can be much larger and still be called a cottage. In the Middle Ages, a cottage was housing for farm workers — sometimes known as cottagers — and the word implied not just a home, but also a barn and land. The first US holiday cottages were built in the 1880s in Bar Harbor, Maine and are credited with introducing the word cottage to North America.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

cottage cottages

She sold 206,815 tickets at $6.70 each, and in October, Collins sold her cottage to Kathleen Spangler, a 29-year-old U.S.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 22, 2026

Leigh got the idea after reading a New York Times article about Imelda Collins, who raised about $1.4 million last year by raffling her two-bedroom cottage in Ireland.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 22, 2026

Kirchner came back inside the cottage, ranting about how he was fed up with the group’s democratic decision-making, and then left, members recalled.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 12, 2026

As a result, a cottage industry of mental health “expat therapists” has emerged, helping people navigate these complex emotions of moving abroad.

From Salon ● Jul. 11, 2026

He’d only ever sent wandering spirits toward them, then stayed near his cottage until the soft crackle of the soul’s departure signaled it was safe to venture out again.

From "The Undead Fox of Deadwood Forest" by Aubrey Hartman

Housing reforms that increase supply, such as allowing smaller lots in new subdivisions, permitting duplexes, townhomes, and backyard cottages on existing lots, and changing zoning laws to allow housing nearer to jobs, are land-use issues.

From Barron's ● Jun. 24, 2026

It is known for its stone cottages, river views and access to popular trails to spots such as Aberglaslyn Pass.

From BBC ● Jun. 10, 2026

New York is one of the top states for family cottages, called camps in the Adirondacks.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 4, 2026

“Land” ends in the place where it began, but in a modern era with cottages turned into holiday homes.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 29, 2026

On campus the big event was the Christmas Cantata, a musical program put on by the residents, followed by fancy food served in the cottages.

From "Three Little Words: A Memoir" by Ashley Rhodes-Courter

Related Words

• bungalow
• cabin
• chalet
• home
• hut
• lean-to
• lodge
• ranch
• shack
• shanty