Cotton (verb)
Posted by TheFallen on August 14, 2002 at
In Reply to: Cotton (verb) posted by R. Berg on August 14, 2002
: : The origin of " I don't cotton to that".
: The Oxford English Dictionary gives earlier figurative senses of
"cotton": "To prosper, succeed, 'get on' well" (obsolete) and "To 'get on' together
or with each other; to suit each other; to work harmoniously, harmonize, agree."
The OED says the origin of the figurative senses is uncertain but directs the
reader to some of its quotations. First, "cotton" as a verb has a few literal
meanings, including this old one: "Of cloth, etc.: To form or take on a nap, to
rise with a nap." Now, these are the quotations that hint at the transition to
the figurative sense:
:
: [Literal sense:]
: In making Hats, 'To Cotton
well', is when the Wooll and other Materials work well and imbody together .
:
'Cotton', to succeed, to go on prosperously: a metaphor, probably, from the finishing
of cloth, which when it cottons, or rises to a regular nap, is nearly or quite
complete .
: [Figurative sense:]
: It cottens well; it cannot choose
but bear A pretty nap .
: Presumably the later figurative senses, "To agree, to fraternize" and "To 'take' to, attach oneself to; to become drawn or attached to," developed from the earlier figurative ones.
You learn something new every day on this board. There I was, reading the previous two posts and wondering what the Heck they were talking about, till a dash to my dictionary fortunately revealed that "to cotton to something" is a US expression apparently meaning to begin to like something. I'm pretty sure that this usage is totally unknown in the UK.
Speaking of cotton as a verb, does the US have the expression "to cotton on (to something)", meaning to realise or come to understand, which is prevalent in the UK?
- Cotton (verb) Word Camel 08/14/02