A cottage is a small house in a village or the countryside, often old, with a garden. A large modern house outside the city is usually just a house or a detached house, meaning one that doesn't share walls with neighbours. In some languages, cottage has been borrowed for exactly that kind of big modern house, but in English it's small. And cottage cheese is soft, fresh white cheese with small lumps.
cottage: will you get the meaning right?
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a small/stone/thatched cottage; a cottage in + the village/countryside; a holiday cottage; cottage cheese
- My aunt lives in a tiny stone cottage at the edge of the village.
- We booked a holiday cottage in Wales with a garden and a fireplace.
- I usually have cottage cheese with honey for breakfast.
What changed
First versionMy uncle has a huge cottage with a pool outside the city.
RevisionMy uncle has a huge house with a pool outside the city.
In English a cottage is a small, modest house, so a huge cottage with a pool sounds like a contradiction. You need the ordinary word house.
In Canada, cottage often means a holiday house by a lake where people go at weekends: We're going to the cottage this weekend. In Britain, people are more likely to use it for a house rented for a holiday: a holiday cottage.
Your turn
Our neighbours have built a three-storey ___ with a double garage and a pool.
Show the answer
house — Three floors, a double garage and a pool make a big house, so the answer is house. In English a cottage is a small house, so it doesn't fit this description.
Describe a country house you've stayed in or would like to live in. Say how big it is and name one detail you remember.
Last summer we stayed in a small cottage with two bedrooms, and I still remember the roses climbing over the front door.
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