cottage industry
noun
1
: an industry whose labor force consists of family units or individuals working at home with their own equipment
2
: a small and often informally organized industry
3
: a limited but enthusiastically pursued activity or subject
this debate about sex and law became a cottage industry for feminist academics—
Wendy Kaminer
Wendy KaminerExamples of cottage industry in a Sentence
weaving, pottery, and other cottage industries
Recent Examples on the Web
Ranking America's national parks has become something of a cottage industry.
—R. Daniel Foster, Forbes.com, 31 May 2025
White Lotus has led to a cottage industry of shows involving rich, eccentric people getting into various hijinks in beautiful, ominous locales.
—Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 22 May 2025
Especially with an entire cottage industry of agents already in place and a system already incentivizing athletes to chase newer, bigger paydays.
—Ryan Kartje, Los Angeles Times, 7 Apr. 2025
The setting comes as mercenary malware sold by NSO Group and a cottage industry of other exploit sellers continues to thrive.
—ArsTechnica, 13 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for cottage industry
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
R. Daniel Foster, Forbes.com, 31 May 2025
White Lotus has led to a cottage industry of shows involving rich, eccentric people getting into various hijinks in beautiful, ominous locales.
—Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 22 May 2025
Especially with an entire cottage industry of agents already in place and a system already incentivizing athletes to chase newer, bigger paydays.
—Ryan Kartje, Los Angeles Times, 7 Apr. 2025
The setting comes as mercenary malware sold by NSO Group and a cottage industry of other exploit sellers continues to thrive.
—ArsTechnica, 13 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for cottage industry
Cite this Entry
“Cottage industry.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cottage%20industry. Accessed 9 Jun. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share