Phrasal verb
cotton on
Definition
phrasal verb. to finally understand something that was not obvious at first.
phrasal verb. to begin to understand or realize a fact, situation, or hidden meaning; often implies a delayed realization.
Examples
“He finally cottoned on to the joke.”
“It took a few minutes for the audience to cotton on to the fact that the performance was a prank.”
“The authorities were slow to cotton on to the sophisticated tax evasion scheme being operated by the offshore firm.”
Examples
simple
“He finally cottoned on to the joke.”
contextual
“It took a few minutes for the audience to cotton on to the fact that the performance was a prank.”
complex
“The authorities were slow to cotton on to the sophisticated tax evasion scheme being operated by the offshore firm.”
Usage
usually followed by the preposition 'to' and an object.
Teaching tip
this is a British English phrasal verb; contrast it with 'catch on' which can mean both 'to understand' and 'to become popular'.
Pitfall
She cottoned on the secret.
She cottoned on to the secret.
the preposition 'to' is required between the phrasal verb and the object.
Phrasal verb
Particles
on
Separability
inseparable
Pattern
cotton + on + (to) + object
Synonyms
Antonyms
Grammar
Scan code
englishreference.com/q/cotton-on