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灰姑娘 (Huī gū niang) — Cinderella (fairy-tale character); a person who suddenly becomes rich or famous from humble beginnings; rags-to-riches success

Definition

Literally the fairy-tale character Cinderella; also used figuratively for someone who rises from humble origins to sudden success or wealth.

noun
Cinderella (fairy-tale character)a person who suddenly becomes rich or famous from humble beginningsrags-to-riches success

Examples

  • 灰姑娘。
    Měi gè nǚ hái xiǎo shí hou dōu tīng guò Huī gū niang de gù shi.
    Every girl has heard the story of Cinderella when she was young.
  • ，灰姑娘。
    Tā cóng yí gè dǎ gōng mèi biàn chéng le bái lǐng, jiǎn zhí shì xiàn shí bǎn de Huī gū niang.
    She went from a factory worker to a white-collar employee – she's a real-life Cinderella.
  • 灰姑娘。
    Zhè bù diàn shì jù jiǎng de shì yí gè Huī gū niang shì de ài qíng gù shi.
    This TV drama is about a Cinderella-style love story.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

灰huīash
姑娘girl
姑gūyoung woman娘niángwoman
联合Coordinate

灰 means ash, while 姑 and 娘 together give 姑娘, a girl; the name is the ash girl, Cinderella.

Characters in this word

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

灰 shows 火 (fire) that can be touched by 又 (hand), meaning ash.

Open 灰 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
女女nǚwoman
Sound part声符shēngfú
古
古gǔ姑gū
Same sound today

The left part 女 marks it as a woman, and the right part 古 provides the sound. It is used for female relatives like an aunt or mother-in-law.

Open 姑 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
女女nǚ
Sound part声符shēngfú
良
良liáng娘niáng
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

娘 is built from 女 (woman) and 良, which supplies the sound.

Open 娘 →
Appears in
Mythology & Folklore

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