cotton to
Britishverb
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to become friendly with
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to approve of
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Take a liking to, get along with, as in This dog doesn't cotton to strangers . Although this verbal phrase comes from the noun for the fabric, the semantic connection between these parts of speech is unclear. [Early 1800s]
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Also, cotton on to . Come to understand, grasp, as in She didn't really cotton on to what I was saying . [ Colloquial ; early 1900s]
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.
The company, whose early trading days date to the 19th century and the era of British rule, once exported opium to China and sold cotton to Britain when the American Civil War dried up supplies.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 27, 2026
"Orena", 40, from France, said she deliberately chose to make her outfit – Haku from Studios Ghibli’s animated movie "Spirited Away" – from linen and cotton to keep cool.
From Barron's ● Aug. 1, 2026
Willie Ingram picked everything from cotton to okra during his 51 years in the state penitentiary, better known as Angola.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 29, 2024
Meanwhile, the fashion industry is responsible for generating between 8-10% of global emissions, according to the United Nations, from growing cotton to using oil to create synthetic materials such as polyester.
From BBC ● Jun. 11, 2023
And there was still cotton to pick for a few nickels and a hunk of cornbread.
From "Out of Darkness" by Ashley Hope Pérez
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
