Dictionary

ottoman en · NOUN

Pronunciation

• /ˈɑtəmən/ (General-American)
• /ˈɒtəmən/ (Received-Pronunciation)
• (US) audio

Etymology

From Ottoman in the early 19th century; so named because reclining on a couch was associated with Middle Eastern customs.

Meanings

1. (countable, uncountable) An upholstered sofa, without arms or a back, sometimes with a compartment for storing linen etc.
   • A 39-year-old British woman was killed when a malfunctioning ottoman bed fell on her neck and asphyxiated her, a coroner’s report said. 2024 October 14, Issy Ronald, “Woman killed by malfunctioning ottoman bed”, in CNN, archived from the original on 22 Oct 2024:
   • These hefty features were on display together with dry-point engravings, marble busts, and mahogany whatnots, which the guests now squeezed between, plumping themselves down on over-stuffed ottomans beneath gleaming crystal electroliers. 2015 July 26, Will Self, “Original short story: Architectural Salvage, by Will Self”, in The Guardian, →ISSN, archived from the original on 11 Aug 2016:
   • In the middle of the room there is a big ottoman; and this, with the carpet, the Morris wall-papers, and the Morris chintz window curtains and brocade covers of the ottoman and its cushions, supply all the ornament, and are much too handsome to be hidden by odds and ends of useless things. 1912 (date written), [George] Bernard Shaw, “Pygmalion”, in Androcles and the Lion, Overruled, Pygmalion, London: Constable and Company, published 1916, →OCLC, Act III, page 144:
2. (countable, uncountable) A low stool or thick cushion used to rest the feet or as a seat.
   • This ottoman is set on casters, and is a great convenience for holding articles, while serving also as a seat. 1869, Catherine E. Beecher, Harriet Beecher Stowe, The American Woman’s Home:
3. (countable, uncountable) A fabric with a pronounced ribbed or corded effect, often made of silk or a mixture of cotton and silk-like yarns.

Forms

Deriveds

ottomanlike

Relateds

chesago

Synonyms

footstool · hassock · tuffet · tumpty · pouffe

Translations (50)

de Canapé (sofa — see also sofa) · hu puff (low stool) · sv ottoman (low stool) · fi rahi (low stool) · fr pouf (low stool) · da ottoman (sofa — see also sofa) · nb ottoman (sofa — see also sofa) · de Couch (sofa — see also sofa) · ru куше́тка (sofa — see also sofa) · ga otamán (low stool) · hu dívány (sofa — see also sofa) · bg пуф (low stool) · ja オットマン (fabric) · ko 오토만 (low stool) · fi ottomaani (sofa — see also sofa) · eo divano (sofa — see also sofa) · pt pufe (low stool) · hy թախտ (sofa — see also sofa) · hu heverő (sofa — see also sofa) · ru оттома́нка (sofa — see also sofa) · fi ottomaani (low stool) · de Ottomane (sofa — see also sofa) · de Sitzkissen (low stool) · ko 오토만 (fabric) · ru пуф (low stool) · bg диван (sofa — see also sofa) · ru канапе́ (sofa — see also sofa) · ru тахта́ (sofa — see also sofa) · cy setl (sofa — see also sofa) · ru пу́фик (low stool) · bg табуретка (low stool) · de Ottomane (low stool) · cmn 搁脚凳 (low stool) · fi jalkarahi (low stool) · ca otomà (fabric) · ru софа́ (sofa — see also sofa) · ru пуф (sofa — see also sofa) · de Polsterhocker (low stool) · ja オットマン (sofa — see also sofa) · he הֲדוֹם (low stool) · mk табуретка (low stool) · nn ottoman (sofa — see also sofa) · ru дива́н (sofa — see also sofa) · fi ottomaani (fabric) · fr divan (sofa — see also sofa) · fr ottomane (sofa — see also sofa) · hu kerevet (sofa — see also sofa) · pt pufe (sofa — see also sofa) · hu ottomán (sofa — see also sofa) · ja オットマン (low stool)