Rumpelstiltskin
[ruhm-puh l-stilt-skin]
- a dwarf in a German folktale who spins flax into gold for a young woman to meet the demands of the prince she has married, on the condition that she give him her first child or else guess his name: she guesses his name and he vanishes or destroys himself in a rage.
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Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for rumpelstiltskin
Contemporary Examples
Turns out, Have Trunk Will Travel actually owns that little baby elephant, Rumpelstiltskin style.
Historical Examples
Is it,” the Queen asked softly, “by any chance Rumpelstiltskin?
That Rumpelstiltskin is my name, She will never guess—the silly dame.
The same thing is told in the German story of Rumpelstiltskin.
Fairy Tales; Their Origin and MeaningJohn Thackray Bunce
Rumpelstiltskin
- a dwarf in a German folktale who aids the king's bride on condition that she give him her first child or guess the dwarf's name. She guesses correctly and in his rage he destroys himself
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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
Word Origin and History for rumpelstiltskin
Rumpelstiltskin
n.
1840, from German Rumpelstilzchen. The German form of the name is used in English from 1828.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
“Rumpelstiltskin”
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.