straight-laced

Examples

• All

• I was pretty straight-laced in high school, but if I had wanted, I could get MJ, ecstasy, or even coke far easier than alcohol.

  Blog text (20)

• Gone is the disorderly letter arrangement, an artifact of late 90s exuberance about the web (which you might still observe in Yahoo!'s brand identity), replaced by a much more straight-laced and rigid arrangement.

  Blog text (17)

• You are pretty straight-laced despite the way you look.

  Frances 2.0 (2018)

• Ah, who would have thought... that a straight-laced dude like you... would enjoy getting a lift?

  The Cookout (2004)

• Mine is very prim and straight-laced.

  The Birds (1963)

• Before Gawker, you wrote for Business 2.0 and other more straight-laced publications.

  Blog text (3)

• The straight-laced, devout congregation is gathered around a large swimming pool.

  Fiction book (1994)

• The replacement president was a very mild, straight-laced man—an ex-priest, actually.

  Blog text (6)

• It's ironic and appropriate that the truly cool character in the program was the one liberals admire least of all: the conservative, straight-laced father played by Tom Bosley.

  Blog text (33)

• You have this image of yourself as straight-laced, but I've seen you enjoy a wild party.

Synonyms

S

straight

vsstraight-laced

23 7.7

Very traditional and not open to change

is focused on moral strictness and modesty rather than closed-mindedness

P

puritanical

vsstraight-laced

14 8.2

Disapproving of pleasure and very strict about moral behavior

is similar but is more general concern than specifically banning pleasure

P

prissy

vsstraight-laced

• Informal

13 7.9

Too fussy about being neat and proper

is more about firm moral rules than mere fussiness or neatness

V

Victorian

vsstraight-laced

8 8.2

Having very strict old-fashioned ideas about sex and how people should behave

is more about strict morals without emphasising an outdated era

P

prudish

vsstraight-laced

8 7.1

Easily shocked by sex and strict about modesty

is broader, covering strict moral judgment beyond only sexual modesty

P

prim

vsstraight-laced

4 7.0

Very formal and proper in a stiff, old-fashioned way

is stronger morally, judging conduct rather than mere manners or style

P

prim and proper

vsstraight-laced

3 7.0

Very formal and correct in clothes and manners, often strict and stiff

is about deep moral conservatism rather than only form and appearance

S

straitlaced

vsstraight-laced

1 8.4

Very strict about manners and morals and disapproving of anything seen as improper

is the same sense but written without a hyphen in many texts

P

priggish

vsstraight-laced

• Offensive

1 9.9

Acting as if you are better than others about rules and manners

is about strict standards themselves rather than moral superiority or tone

S

strait-laced

vsstraight-laced

1 7.8

Very strict about behavior and dress

is a different spelling form with identical meaning

S

straightlaced

vsstraight-laced

• US

1 8.2

Having very strict rules about proper behaviour and dress

is a spelling variant that keeps the same moral meaning

T

tight-laced

vsstraight-laced

8.1

Being very strict about how people behave and dress

is focused on conservative moral rules rather than only social manners

S

square-toed

vsstraight-laced

• Informal

8.8

Very old-fashioned and formal in behavior or views

is more about moral severity rather than merely outdated or conventional style

Antonyms

L

liberal

983 4.4

Having political views that support social change and people's freedoms

How Strict

straight-laced

4 7.1

prudish

8 7.1

strict

359 3.2

tolerant

72 3.2

permissive

• Jargon

14 4.9

Surface Forms

Morphology

Etymology