灰姑娘
Huīgūniang
In Chinese, the name Cinderella is 灰姑娘 (Huīgūniang). Wiktionary also lists 仙杜瑞拉 (Xiāndùruìlā).
Meaning: main character in this fairy tale (name)
Ways to say it
| Chinese | Romanization (Wiktionary) |
|---|---|
| 灰姑娘 | Huīgūniang |
| 仙杜瑞拉 | Xiāndùruìlā |
The term refers to the main character in this fairy tale (name).
What does it mean word for word?
The name 灰姑娘 is a literal translation of the concept. The character 灰 (huī) means 'ash', 姑 (gū) is a kinship term often used for women and 娘 (niáng) means 'girl' or 'lady'.
Which one should you use?
灰姑娘 is the standard descriptive name used in most Chinese translations of the fairy tale. In contrast, 仙杜瑞拉 is a phonetic transliteration of the English name.
How do you pronounce it?
Huīgūniang
Did you know?
- In Chinese pop culture, the 'Cinderella story' is frequently referred to as 灰姑娘情节, which refers to the psychological longing for a miraculous transformation.
- The character 仙 in the phonetic version 仙杜瑞拉 actually means 'fairy' or 'immortal', which adds an unintentional magical layer to the name that isn't in the original English.
- In Chinese, describing someone as a 灰姑娘 can be used metaphorically to describe a person who has undergone a massive, sudden transformation in beauty or status.
Examples in context
- 像灰姑娘这样的故事可以在中国、日本及世界任何国家都可以找到。Stories like Cinderella can be found in China, Japan and in every land of the world.This sentence shows how the term 灰姑娘 is used when discussing the global presence of fairy tales.Tatoeba #817318 by fucongcong, translation #366906 by blay_paul
- 我喜欢看灰姑娘的故事。I enjoy reading Cinderella's story.
- 我鍾意睇灰姑娘嘅故事。I like to watch Cinderella's story.
- 她很喜欢灰姑娘的故事。Tā hěn xǐhuān Huīgūniang de gùshì.She likes the story of Cinderella very much.
- 灰姑娘最终嫁给了王子。Huīgūniang zuìzhōng jià gěile wángzǐ.Cinderella eventually married the prince.
Example conversation
A young woman and a man are talking about a movie.
- 晓雯 Xiaowen你觉得这部电影里的灰姑娘漂亮吗？Nǐ juéde zhè bù diànyǐng lǐ de Huīgūniang piàoliang ma?Do you think the Cinderella in this movie is beautiful?
- 志强 Zhiqiang我觉得她非常迷人。Wǒ juéde tā fēicháng mírén.I think she is very charming.
- 晓雯 Xiaowen我也这么认为。Wǒ yě zhème rènwéi.I think so too.
- 志强 Zhiqiang这部电影真的很浪漫。Zhè bù diànyǐng zhēn de hěn làngmàn.This movie is really romantic.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “cinderella” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
