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cotton wool

noun

cotton in its raw state, as on the boll or gathered but unprocessed.
British. absorbent cotton.

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Origin of cotton wool

First recorded in 1590–1600

Words nearby cotton wool

cotton top, cotton waste, cottonweed, cottonwick, cottonwood, cotton wool, cotton-wool patches, cottony, cottony-cushion scale, cottus, cotula
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for cotton wool

British Dictionary definitions for cotton wool

cotton wool

noun

Also called: purified cotton mainly British bleached and sterilized cotton from which the gross impurities, such as the seeds and waxy matter, have been removed: used for surgical dressings, tampons, etcUsual US term: absorbent cotton
cotton in the natural state
British informal
  1. a state of pampered comfort and protection
  2. (as modifier)a cotton-wool existence
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012