COTTONING (TO OR ON TO) Synonyms: 48 Similar and Opposite Words

cottoning (to or on to)

verb

present participle of cotton (to or on to)

as in knowing

to have a clear idea of failed to cotton on to the fact that her senatorial campaign was going nowhere

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Recent Examples of Synonyms for cottoning (to or on to)

Verb

A week ago, the Chiefs were in Seattle, who signed cornerback Terrion Arnold in August, knowing Arnold is still facing eight first-degree felony chargers, including three counts of kidnapping, which could carry a maximum sentence of life in prison.

— Sam McDowell, Kansas City Star, 29 Oct. 2026
When the three networks divided up the Big Ten’s TV games last spring, Byczek said NBC also zeroed in on that game, as well as USC’s matchups with Ohio State and Penn State, knowing both would fit well featured in prime time.

— Ryan Kartje, Los Angeles Times, 29 Oct. 2026

Definition of knowing

Verb

During that period and beyond, Hawthorne kept a series of notebooks, which scholars see as an important primary source for understanding the ideas and descriptions that informed his early writings and later novels.

— Robert S. Levine, The Conversation, 26 Oct. 2026
The science writer Ann Finkbender wrote a charming essay about understanding this principle of life in Last Word on Nothing.

— Shayla Love, Vox, 25 Oct. 2026

Definition of understanding

Verb

Bahdanau was working with artificial neural networks, which had already shown promise in pattern-recognition tasks such as deciphering handwriting and identifying objects in photos.

— Quanta Magazine, Quanta Magazine, 12 Oct. 2026
In addition to developing better medicines or perfumes, deciphering the mirror images of molecules can help scientists understand the chemical architecture of life, said chemist Holden Thorp, editor-in-chief of the journal Science.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 8 Oct. 2026

Definition of deciphering

Verb

After recognizing the need for sturdier work pants, Strauss partnered with tailor Jacob Davis to develop a design that used copper rivets on denim and duck canvas pants, laying the foundation for the modern blue jean.

— Kristina Rutkowski, Vogue, 29 Oct. 2026
Adebayo’s coaches and teammates celebrated the moment after Wednesday’s win in Atlanta by recognizing his accomplishment in their State Farm Arena locker room before dousing him with water.

— Anthony Chiang, Miami Herald, 29 Oct. 2026

Definition of recognizing

Verb

If this sort of shotgun approach to local targeting is a relatively unfamiliar phenomenon in political circles, football fans have long grown used to seeing ads for things that are essentially irrelevant to their own interests.

— Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 30 Oct. 2026
In fact, resilient optimism begins with seeing the problem clearly.

— Harvard Business Review, Harvard Business Review, 30 Oct. 2026

Definition of seeing

Verb

Infinite Jasons • MacNamara is so far from comprehending the box that his Jason looked utterly bored by his questions.

— Scott Tobias, Vulture, 23 Oct. 2026
Understanding that this is policy is crucial for comprehending how Israeli soldiers are expected to dutifully erase entire villages without questioning orders.

— Jay Weissberg, Variety, 10 Sep. 2026

Definition of comprehending

Verb

Keeping desire alive means choosing pursuits that can never be finished – a craft, a field of study, a relationship – and letting the gap between reaching and grasping stay open.

— Stacy Keltner, The Conversation, 30 Oct. 2026
The closest the Kardashian sisters have come to grasping the point is a discussion about society’s beauty standards in season three of The Kardashians, when Kylie Jenner brought the topic up to Khloé Kardashian and Kourtney Kardashian.

— Elizabeth Gulino, Allure, 27 Oct. 2026

Definition of grasping

Verb

The person behind the picture The appeal of human craftsmanship goes beyond appreciating how many hours something took.

— Tatiana Sataua, Fortune, 15 Oct. 2026
Gilbert described that assignment as a casual acquaintance asking his father to voice a cartoon, without Danny meaningfully appreciating the companies involved.

— Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 15 Oct. 2026

Definition of appreciating

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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cottoning (to)

cottoning (to or on to)

cottonmouth moccasin

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“Cottoning (to or on to).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cottoning%20%28to%20or%20on%20to%29. Accessed 31 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of cottoning (to or on to)

verb

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