cottonwood

[ kot-n-wood ]

/ ˈkɒt nˌwʊd /

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noun

any of several American poplars, as Populus deltoides, having toothed, triangular leaves and cottonlike tufts on the seeds.

QUIZ

THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?

Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.

Question 1 of 7

In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…

candystring

candyfloss

candypuff

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of cottonwood

An Americanism dating back to 1795–1805; cotton + wood¹

Words nearby cottonwood

cotton to, cotton top, cotton waste, cottonweed, cottonwick, cottonwood, cotton wool, cottony, cottony-cushion scale, cottus, cotula

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use cottonwood in a sentence

After a fire, snowbush, elderberry trees, currant bushes, cottonwoods, willow, and ocean spray regrew with gusto.
Prescribed burns can keep wildfires in check. So why are politicians standing in the way?|Madeline Ostrander/Undark|October 27, 2021|Popular-Science
Don’t miss the New Mexico–inspired Gallery Hózhó in the hotel lobby, then head a few miles north to the peaceful haven of Los Poblanos, a historic inn located on 25 acres of gardens, lavender fields, and cottonwood trees.
72 Hours in Albuquerque|kklein|July 6, 2021|Outside Online
According to the study, one project in Alaska consists almost entirely of giant Sitka spruces, yet the local regional average was calculated from a wide mix of trees, including species like cottonwoods that store far less carbon.
The climate solution actually adding millions of tons of CO2 into the atmosphere|James Temple, Lisa Song|April 29, 2021|MIT Technology Review
Sometimes that meant simply sitting down and listening to the frogs, the wind through cottonwood trees, or even just the sound of silence.
How Nature Helped Me Recover from an Eating Disorder|Kate Siber|March 25, 2021|Outside Online

We met under the shade of a cottonwood in a parking lot behind a baseball stadium.
The Devil’s Drug: The True Story of Meth in New Mexico|Nick Romeo|August 24, 2013|DAILY BEAST
What was equally important, a thick clump of cottonwood and willow furnished tolerably secure concealment.
Raw Gold|Bertrand W. Sinclair
The store was a barn-like building, with a row of poplars at the north, and a big cottonwood in front.
Mystery Ranch|Arthur Chapman
They found a little spring at the base of a solitary cottonwood tree, and decided to remain there until daylight.
Three Sioux Scouts|Elmer Russell Gregor
They climbed noiselessly into a large cottonwood, and went sufficiently high to obtain a splendid view of the Kiowa camp.
Three Sioux Scouts|Elmer Russell Gregor
Once in a dog's age you came to a straggling fringe of cottonwood-trees, indicating a creek bottom.
Blazed Trail Stories|Stewart Edward White

British Dictionary definitions for cottonwood

cottonwood

/ (ˈkɒtənˌwʊd) /

noun

any of several North American poplars, esp Populus deltoides, whose seeds are covered with cottony hairs

Also called: tauhinu a native New Zealand shrub, Cassinia leptophylla, with daisy-like flowers

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