Definition of "cotton wool" [cotton wool]

• Cotton in its natural or raw state. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "She told me how she used to make flowers last in the Palais when she wore them in her dress with their stalks wrapped up in cotton wool and silver paper, and they kept ever so fresh for days."
• "Her eyes widened further as her own massive portion of halibut swimming in a viridian sea of mushy peas was plonked unceremoniously in front of her along with a pile of white cotton wool bread and butter."
• "The absurdest part of it is that just the night before, I happened another misfortune to my/left/hand! poured some fierce acid over it, under the name of aromatic vinegar, with which I was filling Miss Jess's Vinaigrette; and that hand had to be wrapped up in cotton wool for twelve hours!"