prudish

/prudish/

Thân thiện

My aunt is so prudish that she always wears long skirts and high collars.

Definition

Adjective: - Excessively or affectedly proper, modest, or morally strict: Describes a person who is overly concerned with propriety, modesty, or conventional morality, often to the point of being easily shocked by anything considered improper or indecent. It implies a rigid, narrow-minded, or hypocritical attitude towards matters of sex, nudity, or behavior.

Usage and Examples

• General Use:
  • My prudish aunt was scandalized by the modern art exhibit.
  • He has a prudish attitude towards any discussion of relationships.
• Describing Behavior or Standards:
  • The book was banned by the town's prudish council.
  • Her prudish upbringing made it difficult for her to adjust to university life.

Advanced Usage and Nuances

• Cultural/Historical Context: The term often carries a critical or pejorative tone, suggesting that the person's strictness is outdated, exaggerated, or insincere. It is frequently used to critique social or moral conservatism.
• "Prudishness" (Noun Form): The quality or state of being prudish.
  • The novel critiques the prudishness of Victorian society.

Variants and Related Words

• Prude (Noun): A person who is excessively concerned with propriety or modesty.
  • He was labeled a prude for refusing to watch the comedy.
• Prudery (Noun): Behavior or attitudes characteristic of a prude; prudishness.
  • The film broke through barriers of cinematic prudery.
• Strait-laced (Adjective): Excessively strict in manners, morals, or opinions. (A close synonym).
• Prim (Adjective): Stiffly formal and respectable; feeling or showing disapproval of anything regarded as improper.
• Puritanical (Adjective): Practicing or affecting strict religious or moral behavior.

Synonyms

• Prim
• Strait-laced
• Priggish
• Victorian
• Puritanical
• Grundyish (archaic)

Antonyms

• Permissive
• Broad-minded
• Liberated
• Uninhibited
• Worldly

Idioms and Phrases

• None directly formed with "prudish" itself. However, related concepts include:
  • To have a bee in one's bonnet about (morality/decency): To be obsessively concerned with a particular idea, often about propriety.
  • To be a Mrs. Grundy: To be an extremely prudish person (from the character in Thomas Morton's play Speed the Plough).

Học thuật

Adjective

1. exaggeratedly proper
   • my straitlaced Aunt Anna doesn't approve of my miniskirts