puritan

Meanings

Plural: puritans

Noun

• a member of a group of English Protestants who in the 16th and 17th centuries thought that the Protestant Reformation under Elizabeth was incomplete and advocated the simplification and regulation of forms of worship
• someone who adheres to strict religious principles; someone opposed to sensual pleasures
• a person excessively concerned about propriety and decorum
• A puritanical person.

Adj

• Acting or behaving according to the Puritan morals (e.g. propagating modesty), especially with regard to pleasure, nudity and sex; ascetic.

Synonyms

prude, puritanical

Related Words

puri-teen, purifur, puritanical, Puritanism, puriteen, purity