Cotton
['kɒt(ə)n] or ['kɑtn]
Definition
(noun.) fabric woven from cotton fibers.
(noun.) thread made of cotton fibers.
(noun.) erect bushy mallow plant or small tree bearing bolls containing seeds with many long hairy fibers.
(noun.) soft silky fibers from cotton plants in their raw state.
(verb.) take a liking to; 'cotton to something'.
Typist: Tim--From WordNet
Definition
(n.) A soft, downy substance, resembling fine wool, consisting of the unicellular twisted hairs which grow on the seeds of the cotton plant. Long-staple cotton has a fiber sometimes almost two inches long; short-staple, from two thirds of an inch to an inch and a half.
(n.) The cotton plant. See Cotten plant, below.
(n.) Cloth made of cotton.
(v. i.) To rise with a regular nap, as cloth does.
(v. i.) To go on prosperously; to succeed.
(v. i.) To unite; to agree; to make friends; -- usually followed by with.
(v. i.) To take a liking to; to stick to one as cotton; -- used with to.
Typist: Meg
Synonyms and Synonymous
n. Cotton-wool.
v. n. [Cant word.] Harmonize, fraternize, HITCH HORSES TOGETHER.
Editor: Miriam
Definition
n. a soft substance like fine wool got from the pods of the cotton-plant: cloth made of cotton.—adj. made of cotton.—v.t. to provide with cotton.—v.i. to agree: to be attached to (the connection of the intransitive meanings is unknown).—ns. Cottonade′ a name given to an inferior kind of cotton cloth; Cott′on-gin a machine for separating the seeds from the fibre of cotton; Cott′on-grass a genus of Cyperace in which the perigone or covering of united bracts which in this order enclose the ripening ovary is developed into long silky or cottony hairs; Cottonoc′racy the cotton planting or the cotton manufacturing interest; Cott′on-plant one of various plants of the genus Gossypium natural order Malvace yielding the textile substance cotton; Cott′on-press a press for compressing cotton into bales; Cott′on-seed the seed of the cotton-plant yielding a valuable oil; Cott′on-spin′ner one who spins cotton or employs those who do; Cott′on-tail the ordinary United States rabbit; Cott′on-this′tle a strong thistle covered with a cottony down; Cott′on-tree the American cotton-wood: the Indian Bombax malabaricum; Cott′on-weed cudweed or everlasting; Cott′on-wood any one of several American species of poplar; Cott′on-wool cotton in its raw or woolly state.—adj. Cott′ony like cotton: soft: downy.
Typed by Gladys
Unserious Contents or Definition
To dream of young growing cotton-fields, denotes great business and prosperous times. To see cotton ready for gathering, denotes wealth and abundance for farmers. For manufacturers to dream of cotton, means that they will be benefited by the advancement of this article. For merchants, it denotes a change for the better in their line of business. To see cotton in bales, is a favorable indication for better times. To dream that cotton is advancing, denotes an immediate change from low to high prices, and all will be in better circumstances.
Editor: Ronda
Examples
- One of the most important of the early inventions in the textile art was the _cotton gin_. Edward W. Byrn. The Progress of Invention in the Nineteenth Century.
- Although the cotton is now a white, soft, clean, downy sheet, still the fibres cross each other in every direction, and they require to be straightened and laid parallel before the spinning. William Henry Doolittle. Inventions in the Century.
- The cotton-gin probably had much to do with the justification of slavery. Ulysses S. Grant. Personal Memoirs of U. S. Grant.
- In 1793 the total export of cotton from the United States was less than ten thousand bales, but by 1860 the export was four million bales. Rupert S. Holland. Historic Inventions.
- He was determined to make a fortune out of cotton-spinning, and he did, in spite of the loss of his patents, and the rivals who were always pursuing him. Rupert S. Holland. Historic Inventions.
- He understood the various processes of handling wool and cotton, although his own work lay outside them. Rupert S. Holland. Historic Inventions.
- The raw cotton was put in a hopper, where it was met by the teeth of the saws, and torn from the seeds. Rupert S. Holland. Historic Inventions.
- It followed that merchants who had ordered goods from the Cromford Mill cancelled their orders, rather than pay the duty, and again Arkwright found his cottons piling up on his hands. Rupert S. Holland. Historic Inventions.
Edited by Jeremy