cologne water
- noun
- /kəˈloʊn ˈwɔːtər/
:
agua de colonia
- Eau de Cologne water.
If you think of Cologne water for instance, it's mostly flowery fragrances that feel very fresh.
- If you think of Cologne water for instance, it's mostly flowery fragrances that feel very fresh.
Examples
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If you think of Cologne water for instance, it's mostly flowery fragrances that feel very fresh.
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He applied some cologne water before leaving for the party to smell nice.
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The cologne water he chose had hints of citrus and musk, making it refreshing.
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She prefers light cologne water for daily wear rather than heavy perfumes.
Synonyms
124
1.0
A liquid with a pleasant smell used to make a person smell nice
46
3.7
A light-smelling liquid you put on your skin
1
4.6
A light scented liquid people put on their skin to smell nice
1
5.3
A light scented liquid that people put on their skin to smell pleasant
How Strong
Surface Forms
Morphology
cologne + water
The compound meaning is directly derivable from 'cologne' (a perfumed liquid) plus 'water' (indicating a diluted or lighter liquid), so a learner who knows both words can infer it refers to a light, water-based fragrance. This noun+noun composition and parallels in other languages (e.g. 'eau de cologne', 'agua de colonia') make the sense transparent to a B1 learner.
Etymology
Cologne water comes from the French name 'Eau de Cologne', which means 'water from Cologne', a city in Germany. Long ago a perfume maker in that city mixed light citrus oils with alcohol and called the result water, and the city name became the word cologne for this light scent. That's why today cologne water means a light, perfumed liquid you put on your skin.