cotton

¹

[ kot-n ]

noun

1. a soft, white, downy substance consisting of the hairs or fibers attached to the seeds of plants belonging to the genus Gossypium, of the mallow family, used in making fabrics, thread, wadding, etc.
2. the plant itself, having spreading branches and broad, lobed leaves.
3. such plants collectively as a cultivated crop.
4. cloth, thread, a garment, etc., of cotton.
5. any soft, downy substance resembling cotton, but growing on other plants.

verb (used without object)

1. Informal. to get along; to agree (usually in the negative and followed by with ):

   She didn't cotton with hypocrites.

   I don't cotton with conventional wisdom on this.

2. Obsolete. to prosper or succeed.

verb phrase

1. Informal.
   1. to come to a full understanding of; grasp or realize:

      Once you cotton on to this principle, you see examples of it everywhere.

      Eventually both sets of parents cottoned on to the fact that the kids were lying about “studying” together.

   2. to become fond of; begin to like:

      I cottoned to the new girl right away when I saw she knew how to muck out a stall.

   3. to approve of; agree with:

      Some organic gardeners freeze the insects in a container and then put them out for the birds, but your kids may not cotton to this idea.

Cotton

²

[ kot-n ]

noun

1. John, 1584–1652, U.S. clergyman, colonist, and author (grandfather of Cotton Mather).

cotton

¹

/ ˈkɒtən /

noun

1. any of various herbaceous plants and shrubs of the malvaceous genus Gossypium, such as sea-island cotton, cultivated in warm climates for the fibre surrounding the seeds and the oil within the seeds See also sea-island cotton
2. the soft white downy fibre of these plants: used to manufacture textiles
3. cotton plants collectively, as a cultivated crop
4. 1. a cloth or thread made from cotton fibres
   2. ( as modifier )

      a cotton dress

5. any substance, such as kapok ( silk cotton ), resembling cotton but obtained from other plants

Cotton

²

/ ˈkɒtən /

noun

1. CottonSirHenry19071987MBritishSPORT AND GAMES: golfer Sir Henry. 1907–87, English golfer: three times winner of the British Open (1934, 1937, 1948)

Derived Forms

• ˈcottony, adjective

Other Words From

• half-cot·ton adjective
• sem·i·cot·ton noun
• un·cot·toned adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of cotton¹

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English cotoun, cot(e)in, from Old French coton, from Arabic quṭun, quṭn

Word History and Origins

Origin of cotton¹

C14: from Old French coton, from Arabic dialect qutun, from Arabic qutn

Example Sentences

Glyphosate is the world's most heavily applied herbicide, used on crops including corn, soybeans, sugar beets, alfalfa, cotton and wheat.

From Science Daily

His father was a shawl weaver and his mother was a cotton winder.

From BBC

Related trending hashtags included: "Xinjiang cotton is the best in the world", "I support Xinjiang cotton", and "Uniqlo’s results in China sees a slump".

From BBC

Xinjiang cotton was once known as some of the best fabric in the world.

From BBC

The water has been used to irrigate a wide variety of crops, including nuts, fruits, tomatoes, cotton and cattle-feed crops to supply dairies and feedlots.

From Los Angeles Times