often attributive
1
a
: 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
2
a
: fabric made of cotton
b
: yarn spun from cotton
3
: a downy cottony substance produced by various plants (such as the cottonwood)
cottoned; cottoning
ˈkät-niŋ
ˈkä-tᵊn-iŋ
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
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Merriam-Webster unabridged
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