cottage cheese

American  

noun

• cottage cheeses
  plural

1. an extremely soft, or loose, white, mild-flavored cheese made from skim-milk curds, usually without rennet.

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cottage cheese British  

noun

1. a mild loose soft white cheese made from skimmed milk curds

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Regionalisms

Farmer cheese and farmer's cheese are widely used throughout the U.S. as terms for a kind of cottage cheese. This same kind of cheese, with varying curd size and sourness, is also called sour-milk cheese in Eastern New England; curd or curd cheese, chiefly in the Northeastern and Southern U.S.; pot cheese, chiefly in the Hudson Valley; smearcase, chiefly in the North Midland U.S., and sometimes cream cheese in the Gulf States.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• cottage cheeses
  plural

Etymology

Origin of cottage cheese

An Americanism dating back to 1840–50

Compare meaning

How does cottage-cheese compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• cottage cheese vs. cream cheese
• ricotta vs. cottage cheese

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

cottage cheese

Vegetarian food influencers demonstrate non-meat ways to increase protein in everyday meals with Greek yogurt, beans and cottage cheese.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 22, 2026

A new “protein boost” recipe for Conagra’s Duncan Hines chewy fudge brownie mix involves adding a cup of blended cottage cheese and a swirl of peanut butter.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 19, 2026

"I suffered from body dysmorphia for years because of that, believing that no matter how strong, thin or young I was, there was no escaping the dreaded cottage cheese thighs."

From BBC ● Aug. 17, 2026

Veggies, salads, pizza, wings, fries, caviar, pickles, cottage cheese, ice cream—they’re all eminently ranchable.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 17, 2026

The man in the green coat mumbled: "No doubt about it, either the man is crazy or the cottage cheese softened his brain!"

From "Adventures of Don Quixote" by Argentina Palacios