Synonyms

cotton candy

American

noun

a fluffy, sweet confection whipped from spun sugar and gathered or wound around a stick or cone-shaped paper core.

cotton candy British

noun

Also called (in Britain and certain other countries): candyfloss. Austral name: fairyfloss. a very light fluffy confection made from coloured spun sugar, usually held on a stick

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of cotton candy

An Americanism dating back to 1925–30

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

He only remembered flashes—fluffy pink cotton candy that melted on his tongue, hundreds of lights flashing from the rides, music flowing from a nearby stage.

From Literature

When the ceremonies were over, Sadako led the others straight to the old lady who sold cotton candy.

From Literature

Last month, as the sky faded to cotton candy pink, Colby spotted nearly a dozen sheep scaling the side of a mountain.

From Los Angeles Times

This combination makes them extraordinarily low in density -- more like planetary-sized cotton candy than solid, rocky worlds.

From Science Daily

“Oh, it needs a lowrider. It needs a palm tree. It needs perfect orange, cotton candy lighting.”

From Los Angeles Times

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023