Dictionary

Cinderella en · NOUN

Pronunciation

• /ˌsɪndəˈɹɛlə/
• (Southern-England) audio

Etymology

From cinder + Italian -ella, as in little cinder girl. Compare French Cendrillon.

Meanings

1. (figuratively, qualifier:by analogy) A mistreated and impoverished girl.
2. (attributive) Something rising unexpectedly from obscurity to success, as a Cinderella team.
3. (attributive) Something neglected and denied resources, as a Cinderella service.
   • Cinderella State
   • The Cinderella of the present trio is the Freshwater, which is laid up in the winter months, when one or other of her ugly sisters is sufficient to cope with the service. 1956 February, R. C. Riley, “The Lymington Railway and Isle of Wight Ferry”, in Railway Magazine, page 82:
   • A very early example of this can be seen in the case of the Midland Main Line (MML). At the start of 1982, this was the Cinderella of the InterCity portfolio but building more High Speed Trains (HSTs) to replace 90mph trainsets was out of the question. During 1982-83, Bleasdale shuffled his HST pack by taking sets from the Eastern and Western Regions and allocated these to the MML. 2020 January 2, David Clough, “How InterCity came back from the brink”, in RAIL, page 64:
   • The West of England Line has long been a Cinderella railway. Decades of patch-and-mend underinvestment have resulted in consistently poor performance. 2026 February 18, Paul Clifton, “West of England Line problems laid bare”, in RAIL, number 1055, page 7:
4. (attributive, colloquial, informal) A procedure or surgery to reshape the feet.
   • By the mid-1930s prominent members of society, including the aristocracy, were paying hefty fees for this Cinderella surgery, correcting double chins, reshaping noses and smoothing wrinkles and creases, even having stomach tucks. 2020, Robert Wainwright, Enid: The Scandalous High-society Life of the Formidable 'Lady Killmore', Allen & Unwin, page 125:
   • For Dr. Sadrieh (who was wearing made-to-order Gucci brogues), foot surgery is a fusion of medicine and fairy tale. At his practice, you don’t have a bunionectomy; you have a Cinderella procedure. 2014 April 22, Laren Stover, “Make Them Fit, Please!”, in The New York Times, archived from the original on 14 Sep 2014:
5. A stamp or stamp-like label issued for purposes other than postal administration, not issued by a central government, or not listed in most general catalogues.
6. (derogatory, rare) A woman employed to clean, especially to remove ash from stoves and fireplaces.

Forms

Cinderella en · PROPN

Pronunciation

• /ˌsɪndəˈɹɛlə/
• (Southern-England) audio

Etymology

From cinder + Italian -ella, as in little cinder girl. Compare French Cendrillon.

Meanings

1. A popular fairy tale embodying a classic folk tale myth-element of unjust oppression and triumphant reward.
2. The main character in this story, a mistreated and impoverished girl.
   • The girls look like Southern belles or Cinderellas. The prom’s theme is Cinderellian: “Until Midnight.” Little, clear slippers sit on the 30 cloth- and candle-covered tables on the tarp-covered gymnasium floor. 1988 May 16, Melissa Merlie, “Dancing the night away”, in Chillicothe Gazette, volume 189, number 39, Chillicothe, Ohio, page 1B, column 2:
   • Womanly duties, as Joan thought of them, were fine for girls who imagined themselves as Cinderellas or Sleeping Beauties, good girls rewarded for menial housework and, in the case of Sleeping Beauty, a passivity so profound it was deaf, dumb, blind, and comatose. 2014, Kathryn Harrison, Joan of Arc: A Life Transfigured, Doubleday, →ISBN:
   • All the miniature Cinderellas, Belles, and Ariels who fill the streets every Halloween are essentially paying homage to characters that will slowly and inevitably chip away at their sense of worth in years to come. 2018, Jen Kim, Love and…: Bad Boys, “The One” & Other Fun Ways to Sabotage Your Relationship, Skyhorse Publishing, →ISBN:
3. (rare) A female given name originating as a coinage.

Forms

Deriveds

Cinderellaesque · Cinderella team · Cinderella club · Cinderella story · Cinderella effect · Cinderella State · Cinderella liberty · Cinderella weed · Cinderella complex · Cinderellian · cinderella stamp · Cinderella dance · Cinderfella · Cinderella sale · Cinderella service

Translations (138)

eu Maria Errauskin (fairy tale) · cmn 灰姑娘 (fairy tale) · tl Sinderela (main character in this fairy tale) · yi סינדערעלאַ (main character in this fairy tale) · ar سِنْدِرِيلَا (fairy tale) · fa سیندرلا (main character in this fairy tale) · es Cenicienta (fairy tale) · cs Popelka (fairy tale) · ca Ventafocs (main character in this fairy tale) · ko 신데렐라 (main character in this fairy tale) · ru Зо́лушка (fairy tale) · da Askepot (main character in this fairy tale) · ja 灰だらけ姫 (fairy tale) · ja 灰まみれ (fairy tale) · ar سِنْدِرِيلَا (main character in this fairy tale) · mt Sindirella (main character in this fairy tale) · he סינדרלה (fairy tale) · sq E Përhitura (fairy tale) · hi सिंड्रेला (main character in this fairy tale) · nl Assepoester (fairy tale) · hi सिंड्रेला (fairy tale) · lt Pelenė (main character in this fairy tale) · ur سنڈریلا (main character in this fairy tale) · vi Lọ Lem (main character in this fairy tale) · et Tuhkatriinu (main character in this fairy tale) · fo Øskufía (main character in this fairy tale) · br Luduennig (fairy tale) · fi Tuhkimo (fairy tale) · is Öskubuska (fairy tale) · it Cenerentola (main character in this fairy tale) · th ซินเดอเรลล่า (fairy tale) · gl Cinderela (main character in this fairy tale) · eo Cindrulino (fairy tale) · sah Күлчээнэ (fairy tale) · ka კონკია (main character in this fairy tale) · ja シンデレラ (fairy tale) · ug كۈلقىز (fairy tale) · de Aschenputtel (fairy tale) · ta சின்டெரெல்லா என்னும் கதையில் வரும் நாயகி (main character in this fairy tale) · gl Cincenta (fairy tale) · sah Күлчээнэ (main character in this fairy tale) · az Zoluşka (main character in this fairy tale) · fi Tuhkimo (main character in this fairy tale) · no Askepott (fairy tale) · hi सिंडिरेल्ला (main character in this fairy tale) · da Askepot (fairy tale) · hy Մոխրոտ (main character in this fairy tale) · he סינדרלה (main character in this fairy tale) · ro Cenușăreasa (fairy tale) · pt Cinderela (main character in this fairy tale) · sk Popoluška (fairy tale) · cy Sinderela (fairy tale) · vi Cô bé Lọ Lem (fairy tale) · sv Askungen (fairy tale) · pt Cinderela (fairy tale) · it Cenerentola (fairy tale) · mn Үнсгэлжин (fairy tale) · yue 灰姑娘 (fairy tale) · sh Pepeljuga (fairy tale) · ru Зо́лушка (main character in this fairy tale) · cy Ulw-Ela (main character in this fairy tale) · cy Ulw-Ela (fairy tale) · te gurtimpunōcukōni oka vyakti yokka lēka vastuvuyokka prajña lēka andaṁ (main character in this fairy tale) · ca Ventafocs (fairy tale) · cy Esgid Fach Wydr (fairy tale) · pl Kopciuszek (main character in this fairy tale) · id Cinderella (main character in this fairy tale) · be Папялу́шка (fairy tale) · no Askepott (main character in this fairy tale) · he לכלוכית (fairy tale) · wa Cropecinde (fairy tale) · ga Luaithríona (main character in this fairy tale) · lv Pelnrušķīte (main character in this fairy tale) · mk Пепе́лашка (fairy tale) · el Σταχτοπούτα (fairy tale) · cy Sinderela (main character in this fairy tale) · nl Assepoester (main character in this fairy tale) · bn সিন্ড্যারেল্যা (main character in this fairy tale) · fo Øskufía (fairy tale) · af Aspoestertjie (main character in this fairy tale) · pl Kopciuszek (fairy tale) · de Aschenputtel (main character in this fairy tale) · ja シンデレラ (main character in this fairy tale) · ko 신데렐라 (fairy tale) · mt Sindirella (fairy tale) · mn Үнсгэлжин (main character in this fairy tale) · sh Pepeljuga (main character in this fairy tale) · af Aspoestertjie (fairy tale) · is Öskubuska (main character in this fairy tale) · nan-hbl 灰姑娘 (fairy tale) · ja 灰かぶり姫 (fairy tale) · mk Пепе́лашка (main character in this fairy tale) · sv Askungen (main character in this fairy tale) · cs Popelka (main character in this fairy tale) · fr Cendrillon (main character in this fairy tale) · sl Pepélka (main character in this fairy tale) · mr सिंडरेला (main character in this fairy tale) · mr सिंडरेला (fairy tale) · eu Errauskine (fairy tale) · he לכלוכית (main character in this fairy tale) · cmn 灰姑娘 (main character in this fairy tale) · sw Bibi Majivu (main character in this fairy tale) · be Папялу́шка (main character in this fairy tale) · hu Hamupipőke (fairy tale) · th ซินเดอเรลล่า (main character in this fairy tale) · nds Aschenpüeling (main character in this fairy tale) · es Cenicienta (main character in this fairy tale) · bg Пепеля́шка (fairy tale) · tr Külkedisi (main character in this fairy tale) · kn ಉಪೇಕ್ಷಿತ (main character in this fairy tale) · sl Pepélka (fairy tale) · sh Пепељуга (main character in this fairy tale) · sk Popoluška (main character in this fairy tale) · sq Hirushja (main character in this fairy tale) · la Cinerella (main character in this fairy tale) · uk Попелю́шка (fairy tale) · bg Пепе́ляшка (main character in this fairy tale) · de Aschenbrödel (fairy tale) · eo Cindrulino (main character in this fairy tale) · sms Kunnpeeipuž (fairy tale) · uk Попелю́шка (main character in this fairy tale) · cmn 仙杜瑞拉 (main character in this fairy tale) · fa سیندرلا (fairy tale) · hu Hamupipőke (main character in this fairy tale) · ro Cenușăreasa (main character in this fairy tale) · ase C Contact Contact (main character in this fairy tale) · el Σταχτοπούτα (main character in this fairy tale) · cmn 仙杜瑞拉 (fairy tale) · ug كۈلقىز (main character in this fairy tale) · et Tuhkatriinu (fairy tale) · gl Cincenta (main character in this fairy tale) · ga Luaithríona (fairy tale) · hy Մոխրոտ (fairy tale) · de Aschenbrödel (main character in this fairy tale) · tr Külkedisi (fairy tale) · sh Пепељуга (fairy tale) · fr Cendrillon (fairy tale) · ur سنڈریلا (fairy tale)