cotton: Meaning and Definition of

cot•ton

1. a soft, white, downy substance consisting of the hairs or fibers attached to the seeds of plants belonging to the genus Gossypium, of the mallow family, used in making fabrics, thread, wadding, etc.
2. the plant itself, having spreading branches and broad, lobed leaves.
3. such plants collectively as a cultivated crop.
4. cloth, thread, a garment, etc., of cotton.
5. any soft, downy substance resembling cotton, but growing on other plants.

1. to get on well together; agree.
2. to prosper or succeed.
3. to cotton to a suggestion.
1. to become fond of; begin to like.
2. to approve of; agree with:to cotton to a suggestion.
3. to come to a full understanding of; grasp:More and more firms are cottoning on to the advantages of using computers.

Cot•ton

1. 1584–1652, U.S. clergyman, colonist, and author (grandfather of Cotton Mather).