Cinderella

noun

Cin·​der·​el·​la ˌsin-də-ˈre-lə How to pronounce Cinderella (audio)
: one resembling the fairy-tale Cinderella: such as
a
: one suffering undeserved neglect
b
: one suddenly lifted from obscurity to honor or significance
Cinderella adjective

Examples of Cinderella in a Sentence

a company that is the Cinderella of the computer industry The team is the Cinderella of the tournament.
Recent Examples on the Web Rolling through the Big West Conference tournament last week had made Monson a Cinderella with stubble, a Jim Valvano without the Italian accent. Ben Bolch, Los Angeles Times, 21 Mar. 2024 Up next for Cinderella is another familiar foe of No. 4 Moozie (Brink), and Brink will be ready and willing to avenge the loss to Third Eye in 2023. – Ready? The Enquirer, 21 Mar. 2024 While there wasn’t a single region (see below for a breakdown) that went chalk, none featured more Cinderella Stories than the Hard Baits region. Shaye Baker, Field & Stream, 20 Mar. 2024 Chartier's goal is never for his students to reach perfection in their brackets; his own model still cannot account for Davidson's 2008 Cinderella story. James Pollard, Quartz, 18 Mar. 2024 A week ago, the Beach were mired in a five-game losing streak to end the regular season as their Cinderella hopes seemed to be circling the drain. Kevin Dotson, CNN, 17 Mar. 2024 For example: several movies that were released in 1989 were placed under 1989, while films with villains like Cruella were placed under Reputation and Cinderella was fittingly under Midnights, according to a video on TikTok shared by a fan. Daniela Avila, Peoplemag, 15 Mar. 2024 Every night of the week, ladies come into the city to dance the night away with the visiting sailors, but the sailors have to leave before midnight to get back to their ships, as their ‘Cinderella liberty’ comes to an end. Alan Taylor, The Atlantic, 12 Mar. 2024 Montgomery High School couldn’t pry the slipper off Cinderella’s foot. John Maffei, San Diego Union-Tribune, 8 Mar. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'Cinderella.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

after Cinderella, fairy-tale heroine who is used as a drudge by her stepmother but ends up married to a prince

First Known Use

1840, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of Cinderella was in 1840

Dictionary Entries Near Cinderella

Cite this Entry

“Cinderella.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Cinderella. Accessed 29 Mar. 2024.

More from Merriam-Webster on Cinderella

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