Cinderellian

Adjective

Cinderellian (comparative more Cinderellian, superlative most Cinderellian)

1. Gracefully small.
   • He had heard for some time the sound of packing and preparing a carriage, but the worst did not strike his mind, for throwing open the window in blind haste, he beheld, O Heavens! the lovely Hebe, just in the trying moment when she was placing her cinderellian foot on the steps of the carriage, the...1835 March 21, “The Prince’s Glance”, in D[avid] L[ester] Richardson, editor, The Calcutta Literary Gazette or Journal of Belles Lettres, Science, and the Arts, volume XI, old series / III, new...
   • The skirts of gowns are made decidedly short in front with a short train behind; this is by no means an admirable style, but will be in high favor with those whose “golden lillies” are of Cinderellian proportions, and whose shoemaker is beloved of St. Crispin.1858 April 5, “Local, Literary and Miscellaneous”, in Buffalo Morning Express and Daily Democracy, volume XIII, number 3,783, section “The Spring Fashions”, page [3], column 1
2. (broadly) Having gracefully small feet.
   • In a well-proportioned physical make-up the stature is about 6 to 6⅓ times the foot length, but in adults the feet range in size from a fashionable No. 1 to the hob-nailed, double sole and tap, No. 12 of the miner; in beauty from those of a Cinderellian belle to the hideous club hoofs of the poor...1889 March 31, “Facts on Feet. How Different People Wear Their Shoes. Character Exhibited In Pedal Motion. The Proud Man Wears Back of Boot Heel. Romance and Song Tell of Human Feet. Clumsiest...
3. Performing gruelling and tedious chores.
   • […] [F]or my purpose in the discussion of poetry is not to furnish a house, but rather, as a Cinderellian drudge, to rid its theory of cobwebs and some of its blinding dust.1919, Henry G. Hartman, “Poetry”, in Aesthetics: A Critical Theory of Art, Columbus, Ohio: R. G. Adams & Co., section III, page 194
4. (broadly) Gruelling and tedious.
   • Each evening, when he returned from work, we’d sail away on a magic carpet to some exotic place. No matter that the hours between were filled with Cinderellian tasks. His love swept away the mundane.2008, Ray Paul, Shards: A Collection of Short Stories, AuthorHouse, →ISBN, page 75
5. Of, resembling, or characteristic of Cinderella (the fairytale).
   • a cinderellian story. “‘Poor Martha Semple! she is indeed an object of pity,’ says Mrs. Townsend, a cousin of hers; ‘not that she is not well treated, not that she is not very amiable, but she is so remarkably plain; it is quite clear she can never marry. Her three sisters, all such belles, all...1864, H[enry] R[obert] Addison, “An Unlooked for Result”, in “All at Sea” or Recollections of a Half-Pay Officer, London: Ward and Lock, […], page 301
   • The entrance and departure on and from the social scene by most of the debutantes has been quite in the nature of a Cinderellian performance.1908 January 5, “In Social Circles. A Week of Many Gay Events—Entertainments Past and to Come—The Latest Engagements and Wedding Announcements—Tales of Travelers—Our Guests—Clubs and Social...
   1. Constituting maltreatment, especially as motivated by favoritism, nepotism, or cronyism.
      • ‘CINDERELLIAN’ TREATMENT OF FARMERS1965 November 25, Cornish Guardian, volume LXV, number 3,385, Bodmin, page 9
   2. Ending at or avoiding midnight.
      • Communicators are almost Cinderellian in their avoidance of midnight, and use either 2359 or 0001.1966 July, All Hands, page 61, column 3
      • 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