ugly duckling
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noun
an unattractive or unpromising child who becomes a beautiful or much-admired adult.
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Let’s start with some etymology: What are the origins of the typographical word “bracket”?
First appeared around 1750, and is related to the French word “braguette” for the name of codpiece armor.
First appeared in 1610, based on the French word “baguette” for the long loaf of bread.
First appeared in 1555, and is related to the French word “raquette” for a netted bat.
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Origin of ugly duckling
First recorded in 1880–85; after the bird in the story of the same name by Hans Christian Andersen
Words nearby ugly duckling
uglify, ugly, Ugly American, ugly as sin, ugly customer, ugly duckling, Ugrian, Ugric, ugsome, uh, Uhde
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021
Example sentences from the Web for ugly duckling
British Dictionary definitions for ugly duckling
ugly duckling
noun
a person or thing, initially ugly or unpromising, that changes into something beautiful or admirable
Word Origin for ugly duckling
an allusion to The Ugly Duckling, a story by Hans Christian Andersen
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
Idioms and Phrases with ugly duckling
ugly duckling
A homely or unpromising individual who grows into an attractive or talented person, as in She was the family ugly duckling but blossomed in her twenties. This term alludes to Hans Christian Andersen's fairy tale about a cygnet hatched with ducklings that is despised for its clumsiness until it grows up into a beautiful swan. The tale was first translated into English in 1846, and the term was used figuratively by 1871.
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.