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Pollyanna

American  
[pol-ee-an-uh] / ˌpɒl iˈæn ə /

noun

  1. an excessively or blindly optimistic person.

adjective

  1. (often lowercase) Also Pollyannaish. unreasonably or illogically optimistic.

    some pollyanna notions about world peace.
Pollyanna British  
/ ˌpɒlɪˈænə /

noun

  1. a person who is constantly or excessively optimistic

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Pollyanna Cultural  

  1. (1913) A children's book by the American author Eleanor H. Porter. The title character is an orphan girl who, despite the difficulties of her life, is always extremely cheerful.

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A “Pollyanna” remains excessively sweet-tempered and optimistic even in adversity.

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Etymology

Origin of Pollyanna

First recorded in 1910–15; from the name of the child heroine in the novel Pollyanna (1913), written by Eleanor Hodgman Porter (1868–1920), American writer

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.