Definitions for Pollyanna
ˌpɒl iˈæn əpol·lyan·na

WiktionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Pollyannanoun

   One who is persistently cheerful and optimistic, even when given cause not to be so.

   You call her an optimist, but I call her an obnoxious Pollyanna.

2. Pollyannanoun

   A secret Santa gift exchange.

3. Pollyannanoun

   derived from Polly and Anna; rare in the real world.

4. Etymology: The sense of a persistent optimist comes from the name of the protagonist in a book by Eleanor Porter.

WikipediaRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Pollyanna

   Pollyanna is a 1913 novel by American author Eleanor H. Porter, considered a classic of children's literature. The book's success led to Porter soon writing a sequel, Pollyanna Grows Up (1915). Eleven more Pollyanna sequels, known as "Glad Books", were later published, most of them written by Elizabeth Borton or Harriet Lummis Smith. Further sequels followed, including Pollyanna Plays the Game by Colleen L. Reece, published in 1997. Due to the book's fame, "Pollyanna" has become a byword for someone who, like the title character, has an unfailingly optimistic outlook; a subconscious bias towards the positive is often described as the Pollyanna principle. Despite the current common use of the term to mean "excessively cheerful", Pollyanna and her father played the glad game as a method of coping with the real difficulties and sorrows that, along with luck and joy, shape every life. Pollyanna has been adapted for film several times. Some of the best known are the 1920 version starring Mary Pickford, and Disney's 1960 version starring child actress Hayley Mills, who won a special Oscar for the role.

WikidataRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Pollyanna

   Pollyanna is a best-selling 1913 novel by Eleanor H. Porter that is now considered a classic of children's literature, with the title character's name becoming a popular term for someone with the same optimistic outlook. The book was such a success that Porter soon produced a sequel, Pollyanna Grows Up. Eleven more Pollyanna sequels, known as "Glad Books", were later published, most of them written by Elizabeth Borton or Harriet Lummis Smith. Further sequels followed, including Pollyanna Plays the Game by Colleen L. Reece, published in 1997. Pollyanna has been adapted for film several times. Some of the best-known include Disney's 1960 version starring child actress Hayley Mills, who won a special Oscar for the role, and the 1920 version starring Mary Pickford.

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1. pollyanna

   Song lyrics by pollyanna -- Explore a large variety of song lyrics performed by pollyanna on the Lyrics.com website.

How to pronounce Pollyanna?

1. Alex

   US English

   David

   US English

   Mark

   US English

   Daniel

   British

   Libby

   British

   Mia

   British

   Karen

   Australian

   Hayley

   Australian

   Natasha

   Australian

   Veena

   Indian

   Priya

   Indian

   Neerja

   Indian

   Zira

   US English

   Oliver

   British

   Wendy

   British

   Fred

   US English

   Tessa

   South African

How to say Pollyanna in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of Pollyanna in Chaldean Numerology is: 7

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of Pollyanna in Pythagorean Numerology is: 2

Examples of Pollyanna in a Sentence

1. Paulo Sotero:

   I'm no 'Pollyanna,' but we've reached the moment where action has to be taken. And action to combat corruption is taking place and we're surprised by our own capacity to do what we're doing.

2. Jaclyn Smith:

   I’m grateful and thank God every day, i have a wonderful husband, two children that are thriving and I have a granddaughter… she’s the light in our lives. Being a mother has been the most important thing in the world to me. But having a granddaughter, its pure joy. I’m just having fun. I really have no complaints. It might sound Pollyanna, but I’m really a lucky girl. And at my age, life is busy!

3. Franklin P. Adams:

   I hate the pollyanna pest who says that all is for the best.

4. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen:

   It seems a little more antagonistic, so that part has changed a little bit, but it's not like this was' Leave it to Beaver,'' Mayberry R.F.D.,'' The Donna Reed Show,' it was never a Pollyanna, Mary Poppins place. It was always rough and tumble politics.

5. One Democratic state official:

   A lot of The Trump administration sounds very Pollyanna, because I hear the phrase' mass vaccination site,' and I think to myself, OK, what operating system are they using to register all these people ? it's all very pie-in-the-sky.

Popularity rank by frequency of use

References

1. ^ Wiktionary
   https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Pollyanna
2. ^ Wikipedia
   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pollyanna
3. ^ Wikidata
   https://www.wikidata.org/w/index.php?search=Pollyanna