buttoned-up
American
[buht-nd-uhp]
/ ˈbʌt ndˈʌp /
adjective
-
conservative, as in professional style or manner.
Employers are looking for buttoned-up types.
-
carefully planned, operated, supervised, etc..
It's one of the most buttoned-up companies in the business.
Etymology
Origin of buttoned-up
First recorded in 1935–40
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
