cotton

英 ['k?t(?)n] 美['kɑtn]

CET4TEM4考研CET6中頻詞核心詞匯

復數:?cottons;

cotton 棉，棉花

來自阿拉伯語。

cotton: cotton: [14] As with knowledge of the plant, its name cotton came to Europe from the Middle East. It originated in Arabic qutn, which passed via Spanish into the other languages of Europe. English acquired it via Old French coton. The verbal idiom cotton (on) to ‘come to understand’ developed in the 20th century from an earlier ‘harmonize, agree’. This in turn has been traced back to a still earlier ‘prosper’, which seems to have originated in the 16th century with the notion of the successful raising of the nap on cotton cloth.
cotton (n.): late 13c., from Old French coton (12c.), ultimately (via Proven?al, Italian, or Old Spanish) from Arabic qutn, a word perhaps of Egyptian origin. Philip Miller of the Chelsea Physic Garden sent the first cotton seeds to American colony of Georgia in 1732. Also ultimately from the Arabic word, Dutch katoen, German Kattun, Proven?al coton, Italian cotone, Spanish algodon, Portuguese algod?o. Cotton gin is recorded from 1794 (see gin (n.2)).
cotton (v.): "to get on with" someone (usually with to), 1560s, perhaps from Welsh cytuno "consent, agree." But perhaps also a metaphor from cloth finishing and thus from cotton (n.). Related: Cottoned; cottoning.

1. Some of the food crops failed. However, the cotton did quite well.: 有些糧食作物歉收。但棉花的收成仍相當不錯。

2. Because it was warm, David wore only a white cotton shirt.: 因為天氣暖和，戴維只穿了一件白色的棉襯衣。

5. He wore brown corduroy pants and a white cotton shirt.: 他身著棕色燈芯絨褲子和白色棉襯衫。