"Pollyanna" meaning in English

See Pollyanna in All languages combined, or Wiktionary

Proper name

IPA: /ˌpɒliˈænə/ Audio: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-Pollyanna.wav [Southern-England]
Rhymes: -ænə Etymology: Polly + Anna Etymology templates: {{compound|en|Polly|Anna}} Polly + Anna Head templates: {{en-proper noun}} Pollyanna
  1. A female given name from Hebrew derived from Polly and Anna; rare in the real world. Categories (topical): English female given names, English given names Synonyms: Polly-Anna, Polly Anna
    Sense id: en-Pollyanna-en-name-UtolkMUc Categories (other): English entries with incorrect language header, English entries with language name categories using raw markup, English entries with topic categories using raw markup Disambiguation of English entries with incorrect language header: 55 32 13 Disambiguation of English entries with language name categories using raw markup: 65 24 11 Disambiguation of English entries with topic categories using raw markup: 50 36 14
The following are not (yet) sense-disambiguated
Etymology number: 1

Noun

IPA: /ˌpɒliˈænə/ Audio: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-Pollyanna.wav [Southern-England] Forms: Pollyannas [plural]
Rhymes: -ænə Etymology: From the name of the protagonist in the 1913 novel Pollyanna, by Eleanor Porter. Head templates: {{en-noun}} Pollyanna (plural Pollyannas)
  1. One who is persistently cheerful and optimistic, even when given cause not to be so. Synonyms: pollyanna Derived forms: Pollyanna creep, Pollyannaish, Pollyannish, Pollyannaism Related terms: IBM Pollyanna Principle, Panglossian, quixotic Translations (a persistently cheerful and optimistic person): optimistaĉo (Esperanto), Pollyanna (French), Πολυάννα (Polyánna) (Greek), Polyanna (Turkish)
    Sense id: en-Pollyanna-en-noun-DHe1GAmF
The following are not (yet) sense-disambiguated
Etymology number: 2

Noun

IPA: /ˌpɒliˈænə/ Audio: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-Pollyanna.wav [Southern-England] Forms: Pollyannas [plural]
Rhymes: -ænə Head templates: {{en-noun}} Pollyanna (plural Pollyannas)
  1. (colloquial, US, Southeastern Pennsylvania) A secret Santa gift exchange. Tags: Pennsylvania, Southeastern, US, colloquial Categories (topical): People
    Sense id: en-Pollyanna-en-noun-6mhJXQP9 Disambiguation of People: 24 13 63 Categories (other): American English
The following are not (yet) sense-disambiguated
Etymology number: 3

Inflected forms

Alternative forms

Download JSON data for Pollyanna meaning in English (6.3kB)

{
  "etymology_number": 1,
  "etymology_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "Polly",
        "3": "Anna"
      },
      "expansion": "Polly + Anna",
      "name": "compound"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_text": "Polly + Anna",
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {},
      "expansion": "Pollyanna",
      "name": "en-proper noun"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "name",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "kind": "topical",
          "name": "English female given names",
          "parents": [
            "Female given names",
            "Given names",
            "Names",
            "All topics",
            "Proper nouns",
            "Terms by semantic function",
            "Fundamental",
            "Nouns",
            "Lemmas"
          ],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "topical",
          "name": "English given names",
          "parents": [
            "Given names",
            "Names",
            "All topics",
            "Proper nouns",
            "Terms by semantic function",
            "Fundamental",
            "Nouns",
            "Lemmas"
          ],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "55 32 13",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [
            "Entries with incorrect language header",
            "Entry maintenance"
          ],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "65 24 11",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with language name categories using raw markup",
          "parents": [
            "Entries with language name categories using raw markup",
            "Entry maintenance"
          ],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "50 36 14",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with topic categories using raw markup",
          "parents": [
            "Entries with topic categories using raw markup",
            "Entry maintenance"
          ],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "2014, Dot and the Waves, page 10",
          "text": "Pollyanna Pocket was small, with long floppy ears and a tail that coiled upwards in a little ringlet. She was a bouncy, happy young dog, who frolicked all day",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "A female given name from Hebrew derived from Polly and Anna; rare in the real world."
      ],
      "id": "en-Pollyanna-en-name-UtolkMUc",
      "links": [
        [
          "given name",
          "given name"
        ],
        [
          "Polly",
          "Polly#English"
        ],
        [
          "Anna",
          "Anna#English"
        ]
      ],
      "synonyms": [
        {
          "word": "Polly-Anna"
        },
        {
          "word": "Polly Anna"
        }
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "ipa": "/ˌpɒliˈænə/"
    },
    {
      "rhymes": "-ænə"
    },
    {
      "audio": "LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-Pollyanna.wav",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/6/60/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Vealhurl-Pollyanna.wav/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Vealhurl-Pollyanna.wav.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/6/60/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Vealhurl-Pollyanna.wav/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Vealhurl-Pollyanna.wav.ogg",
      "tags": [
        "Southern-England"
      ],
      "text": "Audio (Southern England)"
    }
  ],
  "word": "Pollyanna"
}

{
  "etymology_number": 2,
  "etymology_text": "From the name of the protagonist in the 1913 novel Pollyanna, by Eleanor Porter.",
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "Pollyannas",
      "tags": [
        "plural"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {},
      "expansion": "Pollyanna (plural Pollyannas)",
      "name": "en-noun"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "noun",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [],
      "derived": [
        {
          "word": "Pollyanna creep"
        },
        {
          "word": "Pollyannaish"
        },
        {
          "word": "Pollyannish"
        },
        {
          "word": "Pollyannaism"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "text": "You call her an optimist, but I call her an obnoxious Pollyanna.",
          "type": "example"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1930, George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin (lyrics and music), “But Not for Me”, performed by Ginger Rogers",
          "text": "I never wanna hear / From any cheerful Pollyannas / Who tell you Fate supplies a mate / It's all bananas",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2017 November 12, Miranda Sawyer, “Björk: ‘People miss the jokes. A lot of it is me taking the piss out of myself’”, in The Guardian",
          "text": "‘Next time we’re going to have fun, OK?’ I wanted this album to go towards the light. You indulge in the grief to a certain point, but then you have to be a little bit Pollyanna.”",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "One who is persistently cheerful and optimistic, even when given cause not to be so."
      ],
      "id": "en-Pollyanna-en-noun-DHe1GAmF",
      "links": [
        [
          "cheerful",
          "cheerful"
        ],
        [
          "optimistic",
          "optimistic"
        ]
      ],
      "related": [
        {
          "word": "IBM Pollyanna Principle"
        },
        {
          "word": "Panglossian"
        },
        {
          "word": "quixotic"
        }
      ],
      "synonyms": [
        {
          "word": "pollyanna"
        }
      ],
      "translations": [
        {
          "code": "eo",
          "lang": "Esperanto",
          "sense": "a persistently cheerful and optimistic person",
          "word": "optimistaĉo"
        },
        {
          "code": "fr",
          "lang": "French",
          "sense": "a persistently cheerful and optimistic person",
          "word": "Pollyanna"
        },
        {
          "code": "el",
          "lang": "Greek",
          "roman": "Polyánna",
          "sense": "a persistently cheerful and optimistic person",
          "word": "Πολυάννα"
        },
        {
          "code": "tr",
          "lang": "Turkish",
          "sense": "a persistently cheerful and optimistic person",
          "word": "Polyanna"
        }
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "ipa": "/ˌpɒliˈænə/"
    },
    {
      "rhymes": "-ænə"
    },
    {
      "audio": "LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-Pollyanna.wav",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/6/60/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Vealhurl-Pollyanna.wav/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Vealhurl-Pollyanna.wav.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/6/60/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Vealhurl-Pollyanna.wav/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Vealhurl-Pollyanna.wav.ogg",
      "tags": [
        "Southern-England"
      ],
      "text": "Audio (Southern England)"
    }
  ],
  "wikipedia": [
    "Eleanor H. Porter",
    "Pollyanna"
  ],
  "word": "Pollyanna"
}

{
  "etymology_number": 3,
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "Pollyannas",
      "tags": [
        "plural"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {},
      "expansion": "Pollyanna (plural Pollyannas)",
      "name": "en-noun"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "noun",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "American English",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "24 13 63",
          "kind": "topical",
          "langcode": "en",
          "name": "People",
          "orig": "en:People",
          "parents": [
            "Human",
            "All topics",
            "Fundamental"
          ],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "A secret Santa gift exchange."
      ],
      "id": "en-Pollyanna-en-noun-6mhJXQP9",
      "links": [
        [
          "secret Santa",
          "secret Santa#English"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(colloquial, US, Southeastern Pennsylvania) A secret Santa gift exchange."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "Pennsylvania",
        "Southeastern",
        "US",
        "colloquial"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "ipa": "/ˌpɒliˈænə/"
    },
    {
      "rhymes": "-ænə"
    },
    {
      "audio": "LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-Pollyanna.wav",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/6/60/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Vealhurl-Pollyanna.wav/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Vealhurl-Pollyanna.wav.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/6/60/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Vealhurl-Pollyanna.wav/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Vealhurl-Pollyanna.wav.ogg",
      "tags": [
        "Southern-England"
      ],
      "text": "Audio (Southern England)"
    }
  ],
  "word": "Pollyanna"
}
{
  "categories": [
    "English 4-syllable words",
    "English compound terms",
    "English countable nouns",
    "English entries with incorrect language header",
    "English entries with language name categories using raw markup",
    "English entries with topic categories using raw markup",
    "English eponyms",
    "English lemmas",
    "English nouns",
    "English proper nouns",
    "English terms with IPA pronunciation",
    "English terms with audio links",
    "English uncountable nouns",
    "Rhymes:English/ænə",
    "Rhymes:English/ænə/4 syllables",
    "en:People"
  ],
  "etymology_number": 1,
  "etymology_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "Polly",
        "3": "Anna"
      },
      "expansion": "Polly + Anna",
      "name": "compound"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_text": "Polly + Anna",
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {},
      "expansion": "Pollyanna",
      "name": "en-proper noun"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "name",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        "English female given names",
        "English female given names from Hebrew",
        "English given names",
        "English terms with quotations",
        "Quotation templates to be cleaned"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "2014, Dot and the Waves, page 10",
          "text": "Pollyanna Pocket was small, with long floppy ears and a tail that coiled upwards in a little ringlet. She was a bouncy, happy young dog, who frolicked all day",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "A female given name from Hebrew derived from Polly and Anna; rare in the real world."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "given name",
          "given name"
        ],
        [
          "Polly",
          "Polly#English"
        ],
        [
          "Anna",
          "Anna#English"
        ]
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "ipa": "/ˌpɒliˈænə/"
    },
    {
      "rhymes": "-ænə"
    },
    {
      "audio": "LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-Pollyanna.wav",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/6/60/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Vealhurl-Pollyanna.wav/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Vealhurl-Pollyanna.wav.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/6/60/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Vealhurl-Pollyanna.wav/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Vealhurl-Pollyanna.wav.ogg",
      "tags": [
        "Southern-England"
      ],
      "text": "Audio (Southern England)"
    }
  ],
  "synonyms": [
    {
      "word": "Polly-Anna"
    },
    {
      "word": "Polly Anna"
    }
  ],
  "word": "Pollyanna"
}

{
  "categories": [
    "English 4-syllable words",
    "English countable nouns",
    "English entries with incorrect language header",
    "English entries with language name categories using raw markup",
    "English entries with topic categories using raw markup",
    "English eponyms",
    "English lemmas",
    "English nouns",
    "English terms with IPA pronunciation",
    "English terms with audio links",
    "Rhymes:English/ænə",
    "Rhymes:English/ænə/4 syllables",
    "en:People"
  ],
  "derived": [
    {
      "word": "Pollyanna creep"
    },
    {
      "word": "Pollyannaish"
    },
    {
      "word": "Pollyannish"
    },
    {
      "word": "Pollyannaism"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_number": 2,
  "etymology_text": "From the name of the protagonist in the 1913 novel Pollyanna, by Eleanor Porter.",
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "Pollyannas",
      "tags": [
        "plural"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {},
      "expansion": "Pollyanna (plural Pollyannas)",
      "name": "en-noun"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "noun",
  "related": [
    {
      "word": "IBM Pollyanna Principle"
    },
    {
      "word": "Panglossian"
    },
    {
      "word": "quixotic"
    }
  ],
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        "English terms with quotations",
        "English terms with usage examples"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "text": "You call her an optimist, but I call her an obnoxious Pollyanna.",
          "type": "example"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1930, George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin (lyrics and music), “But Not for Me”, performed by Ginger Rogers",
          "text": "I never wanna hear / From any cheerful Pollyannas / Who tell you Fate supplies a mate / It's all bananas",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2017 November 12, Miranda Sawyer, “Björk: ‘People miss the jokes. A lot of it is me taking the piss out of myself’”, in The Guardian",
          "text": "‘Next time we’re going to have fun, OK?’ I wanted this album to go towards the light. You indulge in the grief to a certain point, but then you have to be a little bit Pollyanna.”",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "One who is persistently cheerful and optimistic, even when given cause not to be so."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "cheerful",
          "cheerful"
        ],
        [
          "optimistic",
          "optimistic"
        ]
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "ipa": "/ˌpɒliˈænə/"
    },
    {
      "rhymes": "-ænə"
    },
    {
      "audio": "LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-Pollyanna.wav",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/6/60/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Vealhurl-Pollyanna.wav/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Vealhurl-Pollyanna.wav.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/6/60/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Vealhurl-Pollyanna.wav/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Vealhurl-Pollyanna.wav.ogg",
      "tags": [
        "Southern-England"
      ],
      "text": "Audio (Southern England)"
    }
  ],
  "synonyms": [
    {
      "word": "pollyanna"
    }
  ],
  "translations": [
    {
      "code": "eo",
      "lang": "Esperanto",
      "sense": "a persistently cheerful and optimistic person",
      "word": "optimistaĉo"
    },
    {
      "code": "fr",
      "lang": "French",
      "sense": "a persistently cheerful and optimistic person",
      "word": "Pollyanna"
    },
    {
      "code": "el",
      "lang": "Greek",
      "roman": "Polyánna",
      "sense": "a persistently cheerful and optimistic person",
      "word": "Πολυάννα"
    },
    {
      "code": "tr",
      "lang": "Turkish",
      "sense": "a persistently cheerful and optimistic person",
      "word": "Polyanna"
    }
  ],
  "wikipedia": [
    "Eleanor H. Porter",
    "Pollyanna"
  ],
  "word": "Pollyanna"
}

{
  "categories": [
    "English 4-syllable words",
    "English countable nouns",
    "English entries with incorrect language header",
    "English entries with language name categories using raw markup",
    "English entries with topic categories using raw markup",
    "English eponyms",
    "English lemmas",
    "English nouns",
    "English terms with IPA pronunciation",
    "English terms with audio links",
    "Rhymes:English/ænə",
    "Rhymes:English/ænə/4 syllables",
    "en:People"
  ],
  "etymology_number": 3,
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "Pollyannas",
      "tags": [
        "plural"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {},
      "expansion": "Pollyanna (plural Pollyannas)",
      "name": "en-noun"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "noun",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        "American English",
        "English colloquialisms"
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "A secret Santa gift exchange."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "secret Santa",
          "secret Santa#English"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(colloquial, US, Southeastern Pennsylvania) A secret Santa gift exchange."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "Pennsylvania",
        "Southeastern",
        "US",
        "colloquial"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "ipa": "/ˌpɒliˈænə/"
    },
    {
      "rhymes": "-ænə"
    },
    {
      "audio": "LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-Pollyanna.wav",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/6/60/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Vealhurl-Pollyanna.wav/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Vealhurl-Pollyanna.wav.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/6/60/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Vealhurl-Pollyanna.wav/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Vealhurl-Pollyanna.wav.ogg",
      "tags": [
        "Southern-England"
      ],
      "text": "Audio (Southern England)"
    }
  ],
  "word": "Pollyanna"
}

This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable English dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2024-04-24 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2024-04-21 using wiktextract (82c8ff9 and f4967a5). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.

If you use this data in academic research, please cite Tatu Ylonen: Wiktextract: Wiktionary as Machine-Readable Structured Data, Proceedings of the 13th Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation (LREC), pp. 1317-1325, Marseille, 20-25 June 2022. Linking to the relevant page(s) under https://kaikki.org would also be greatly appreciated.