puritanical

Often pu·ri·tan·ic

[pyoor-i-tan-i-kuhl]

adjective

1. very strict in moral or religious matters, often excessively so; rigidly austere.

2. Sometimes Puritanical of, relating to, or characteristic of Puritans or Puritanism.

puritanical

/ ˌpjʊərɪˈtænɪkəl /

adjective

1. derogatory,  strict in moral or religious outlook, esp in shunning sensual pleasures

2. (sometimes capital) of or relating to a puritan or the Puritans

Other Word Forms

• puritanicalness noun
• puritanically adverb
• unpuritanic adjective
• unpuritanical adjective
• unpuritanically adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of puritanical¹

First recorded in 1600–10; Puritan + -ical

Example Sentences

The setting is still a Swiss alpine hamlet, but the villagers are all members of some puritanical sect and its sleepwalking heroine, Amina, has longings that transcend its limits.

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The Jesus Army church recruited thousands of people to live in close-knit, puritanical communities in Northamptonshire, London and the Midlands.

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It’s another element in Saudi Arabia’s about-face from a hermit kingdom notorious for puritanical laws to a tourist destination that can draw 150 million visitors a year.

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Then there's the "hustle culture" guys, who instead insist that puritanical self-deprivation is the key to masculinity: strict diets, elaborate workouts, overtime schedules that leave no time for a social life.

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New York and New England went on to become competing centers of power and ideology: one pluralistic and globally-minded; the other moralistic, monocultural and, well, puritanical.

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Related Words

• prudish 
• rigid