Meaning & use
ball of cotton
Last updated
Meanings
nouncountable
A small round mass of soft cotton fibers, used for cleaning, first aid, or crafts.
Grammar: Countable: you can say a ball of cotton or two balls of cotton.
Patterns
- a ball of cotton
- use a ball of cotton
- a ball of cotton soaked in something
She wiped the cut with a clean ball of cotton.
He packed a few balls of cotton in the first-aid kit.
The nurse soaked a ball of cotton in alcohol before cleaning the wound.
nouncountable
A round lump of raw cotton fiber, especially as sold or handled in bulk.
Grammar: Countable; often used when talking about the material before it is made into thread or cloth.
Patterns
- a ball of raw cotton
- pick up a ball of cotton
- spin a ball of cotton into thread
The workers separated the seeds from each ball of cotton.
In the old mill, a ball of cotton was spun into fine thread.
She bought a large ball of cotton to stuff the cushion.
Word forms
| plural | balls of cotton |
|---|
Common combinations
- a clean ball of cotton
- Use a clean ball of cotton to wipe the lens.
- a ball of cotton soaked in alcohol
- The nurse held a ball of cotton soaked in alcohol against his arm.
- a ball of raw cotton
- The machine pulled apart each ball of raw cotton.
- a ball of cotton wool
- In Britain, people often buy a bag of cotton wool rather than a single ball of cotton.
- wipe something with a ball of cotton
- She wiped the baby's eyes with a ball of cotton.
Synonyms and how they differ
- cotton ball
- The usual American term for the small ready-made pad used on skin; a ball of cotton can also mean the raw fiber.
- cotton wool ball
- The common British phrase for the same small soft pad.
- wad
- A wad is any small compressed mass of soft material, not specifically cotton.
Word family
- cotton noun
- The soft white fiber from the cotton plant.
- cotton wool noun
- British term for soft fluffy cotton used for cleaning skin.
- cotton ball noun
- American term for a small round pad of cotton.
Commonly confused: ball of cotton or cotton ball?
ball of cotton vs cotton ball
A cotton ball is the small ready-made pad you buy in a bag; a ball of cotton may also mean a lump of raw fiber before it is processed.
Practice
Which sentence uses the phrase correctly?
Choose one answer.
The phrase is countable and needs a determiner: a ball of cotton. Option 1 wrongly makes cotton plural, option 2 drops the article, and option 3 repeats the noun.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “ball of cotton”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.