cottonwood
Americannoun
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cottonwoods
plural
noun
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any of several North American poplars, esp Populus deltoides, whose seeds are covered with cottony hairs
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Also called: tauhinu. a native New Zealand shrub, Cassinia leptophylla , with daisy-like flowers
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of cottonwood
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.
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“It brings back memories of hunkering down behind an old cottonwood drift log…drinking black coffee from a Stanley thermos and waiting for mallards to whistle by,” he mused on Facebook, where he does his campaigning.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 10, 2026
Vegetation visible along the reservoir shoreline and river channel includes tamarisk, willow, cottonwood, sedges, and various grasses.
From Science Daily ● Jun. 18, 2026
Along rivers and creeks, bright yellow cottonwood trees congregated in bursts of yellow.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 9, 2025
And for me, this cottonwood brings a kind of serenity and continuous awe.
From Seattle Times ● May 24, 2024
“Miss Sadie gave me this bucket and told me to find a young cottonwood tree in the moonlight.”
From "Moon Over Manifest" by Clare Vanderpool
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When an eight-mile stretch of cottonwoods and willows suddenly died in 2005, it became clear that something needed to change.
From Slate ● May 26, 2025
The wetland attracts birds, such as coots and tricolored blackbirds, and also recharges the aquifer that the roots of cottonwoods and willows tap into.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 26, 2024
Within a few years, there were 9600 young cottonwoods in a single hectare.
From Science Magazine ● Oct. 18, 2023
On the horizon stand silent cottonwoods known as “witness trees.”
From New York Times ● Oct. 18, 2023
Under the jack oaks and the cottonwoods there was nothing.
From "Sounder" by William H. Armstrong
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