cot·ton
| \ ˈkä-tᵊn
\
\
Definition of cotton
(Entry 1 of 4)
1a
: a soft usually white fibrous substance composed of the hairs surrounding the seeds of various erect freely branching tropical plants (genus Gossypium) of the mallow family
b
: a plant producing cotton
especially
: one grown for its cotton
c
: a crop of cotton
2a
: fabric made of cotton
b
: yarn spun from cotton
3
: a downy cottony substance produced by various plants (such as the cottonwood)
cotton
verb
cottoned;
cottoning\ ˈkät-niŋ
, ˈkä-tᵊn-iŋ \
, ˈkä-tᵊn-iŋ \
Definition of cotton (Entry 2 of 4)
1
: to take a liking
—used with to cottons to people easily
2
: to come to understand
—used with to or on to cottoned on to the fact that our children work furiously— H. M. McLuhan
Cotton
biographical name (1)
Cot·ton
| \ ˈkä-tᵊn
\
\
Definition of Cotton (Entry 3 of 4)
Charles 1630–1687 English author and translator
Cotton
biographical name (2)Definition of Cotton (Entry 4 of 4)
John 1585–1652 American (English-born) Puritan clergyman
Illustration of cotton
Noun
cotton: 1 flowering branch; 2 fruit, unopened; 3 fruit, partly opened
In the meaning defined above
Keep scrolling for more
Examples of cotton in a Sentence
Noun
They are in the field picking cotton. She doesn't wear cotton in the winter.Recent Examples on the Web: Noun
Still, flooding across eastern portions of the Carolinas could hurt cotton fields, said Don Keeney, senior agricultural meteorologist at Maxar. — Marvin G. Perez, chicagotribune.com, "Orange juice sinks with Florida groves set to escape Dorian fury," 3 Sep. 2019 Made out of 60 percent cotton and featuring cute details like a tassel tie, the dress caught the eye of influencers like @shopdandy and @graceatwood, who have purchased it in several colors. — Christina Butan, PEOPLE.com, "This $30 Viral Amazon Dress Is About to Sell Out — Here are 5 Even Cuter Lookalikes," 26 Aug. 2019 In 1998, in Fresno County, California, 34 farm workers were sickened after going to work on a cotton field recently sprayed with carbofuran, according to a UC Centers for Disease Control report. — Zoë Schlanger, Quartz, "Illegal marijuana growers are poisoning national forests with banned pesticides," 23 Aug. 2019 Separated from the surrounding cotton fields and cattle pastures by a razor-wire fence, the station stood on the town’s main road. — BostonGlobe.com, "Dirty, hungry, scared, and sick: inside Clint’s razor wire," 6 July 2019 The state is the largest user of chlorpyrifos — more than 900,000 pounds of it was applied in 2017 to almonds, grapes, citrus, alfalfa, stone fruit, cotton and other crops, according to state data. — Los Angeles Times, "Trump defended a pesticide linked to developmental disorders. California will ban it," 14 Aug. 2019 She and her father, Mark Yeager, own Red Land Cotton, a company that sells sustainable home linens made from the cotton grown and processed on their family farm near Bankhead National Forest. — Anna Claire Vollers | Avollers@al.com, al.com, "After the abortion ban and #BoycottAlabama, small businesses struggle to find ‘a new normal’," 17 July 2019 Each of them has a little design embroidered into the cotton that references staples of New York City life: pigeons, dollar pizza slices, subway rats. — Arielle Pardes, WIRED, "AI's Latest Job? Designing Cool T-Shirts," 11 July 2019 Fashion news editor Steff Yotka never heads East without a vibrant men’s button-down, while accessories director Willow Lindley sticks to a foolproof basic: the white cotton shirtdress. — Madeline Fass, Vogue, "11 Fresh Ideas for Covering Up at the Beach This Summer," 3 July 2019Recent Examples on the Web: Verb
As more players adopted the Panenka, goalkeepers cottoned on. — The Economist, "Lots of investors bet on “factors”, such as size, value and momentum," 18 July 2019 But in the past year or so, some manufacturers have cottoned on to the idea and started releasing devices that can keep up with more than a dozen tabs. — Dieter Bohn, The Verge, "HP Chromebook x2 review: semi-pro," 27 Sep. 2018 But the last two months, batters have cottoned onto him. — Maria Torres, kansascity, "Home runs bite Jakob Junis again as Royals lose to Brewers," 26 June 2018 By the 1980s, the rallying crowd had cottoned on and started sending increasingly specialized cars to Colorado. — Jonathan M. Gitlin, Ars Technica, "This electric car could set a new record to the top of Pikes Peak this year," 19 Mar. 2018 If relay is 15% cheaper than conventional trucking, as Mr Garg claims, others will cotton on. — The Economist, "The Indian pony expressRivigo is helping the Indian truck-driving industry out of a jam," 30 Sep. 2017 But not everyone will cotton to a former business district that still lacks many residential amenities. — C. J. Hughes, New York Times, "Where to Live When the L Train Shuts Down," 26 May 2017 His loyal readers will cotton to the idea — calico to it! — that the future lies in the fun, and thus that the future is fun. — Virginia Heffernan, New York Times, "Steven Johnson on How Play Shaped the World," 22 Nov. 2016These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'cotton.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Keep scrolling for more
Keep scrolling for more
More Definitions for cotton
cotton
noun
English Language Learners Definition of cotton
: a soft, white material that grows on the seeds of a tall plant and that is used to make cloth
also
: the plants on which this material grows
: cloth that is made of cotton
also
: clothing that is made of this cloth
chiefly British
: yarn that is made of cotton
See the full definition for cotton in the English Language Learners Dictionary
cotton
noun
cot·ton
| \ ˈkä-tᵊn
\
\
Kids Definition of cotton
1
: a soft fluffy usually white material made up of twisted hairs that surrounds the