silk cotton

4.6

A soft, light fiber from the kapok tree that people use to fill pillows and keep things warm

noun
/sɪlk ˈkɑtən/

: algodón de seda

They used silk cotton to fill the cushions for extra softness.

Examples

I love the feel of silk cotton against my skin.
Traditional life jackets were often stuffed with silk cotton for buoyancy.
The fiber from the kapok tree, known as silk cotton, is lightweight and water-resistant.
These pillows are stuffed with silk cotton.
The pillow was filled with soft silk cotton, making it very comfortable to sleep on.
She chose a quilt stuffed with silk cotton because it provides excellent insulation in winter.
The soft silk cotton fiber is ideal for stuffing toys and cushions.

Synonyms

vegetable silk

vssilk cotton

9.1

Soft, silky plant fiber from a tropical tree that fills pillows and insulates

is the alternative common name for the same fiber

kapok

vssilk cotton

9.7

A light soft natural fiber from seed pods used to fill pillows and mattresses

focuses mainly on stuffing pillows and insulation rather than broader uses

How Soft

down

34 4.8

silk cotton

4.6

cotton

115 1.0

wool

140 1.0

straw

79 1.0

Surface Forms

silk cotton singular

silk cottons plural

Morphology

silk + cotton

The compound literally combines 'silk' and 'cotton', so a learner who knows those words can infer it refers to a fiber with qualities of silk and cotton (i.e. a soft plant fibre), which matches the listed definition as kapok stuffing. This is a descriptive, compositional name common cross-linguistically, so the meaning is immediately derivable from the constituents.

Etymology

Silk cotton may come from the look of the kapok tree's fibers: people thought they were shiny and fine like silk but soft and fluffy like cotton, and they used them to 'stuff' pillows and life jackets. That's why silk cotton now means the soft, silky plant fiber used for 'stuffing' and to help keep things warm or floating.