straight-laced

[ streyt-leyst ]
/ ˈstreɪtˈleɪst /
SEE SYNONYMS FOR straight-laced ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

strait-laced.

QUIZZES

DO YOU KNOW THIS VOCABULARY FROM "THE HANDMAID'S TALE"?

"The Handmaid's Tale" was required reading for many of us in school. Everyone else has probably watched the very popular and addictive TV show. Do you remember this vocabulary from the book, and do you know what these terms mean?
Question 1 of 10
decorum
the act of or need for making up one's mind.
dignified propriety of behavior, speech, dress, etc.
a company of singers, especially an organized group employed in church service.
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OTHER WORDS FROM straight-laced

straight-lac·ed·ly [streyt-ley-sid-lee, -leyst-lee] /ˈstreɪtˈleɪ sɪd li, -ˈleɪst li/, adverbstraight-lac·ed·ness, noun

Words nearby straight-laced

straight-arm, straight-backed, straight-chain, straight-edge, straight-from-the-shoulder, straight-laced, straight-line, straight-out, straightaway, straightedge, straighten

Definition for straight-laced (2 of 2)

strait-laced

or straight-laced

[ streyt-leyst ]
/ ˈstreɪtˈleɪst /

adjective

excessively strict in conduct or morality; puritanical; prudish: strait-laced censors.
tightly laced, as a bodice.
wearing tightly laced garments.

Origin of strait-laced

late Middle English word dating back to 1400–50

OTHER WORDS FROM strait-laced

strait-lac·ed·ly [streyt-ley-sid-lee, -leyst-lee] /ˈstreɪtˈleɪ sɪd li, -ˈleɪst li/, adverbstrait-lac·ed·ness, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Words related to straight-laced

rigid, bigoted, bourgeois, commonplace, conforming, conservative, demure, dogmatic, hackneyed, humdrum, illiberal, inflexible, insular, lame, literal, moderate, moral, narrow, narrow-minded, obstinate

Example sentences from the Web for straight-laced

British Dictionary definitions for straight-laced (1 of 2)

straight-laced

adjective

a variant spelling of strait-laced

British Dictionary definitions for straight-laced (2 of 2)

strait-laced

straight-laced

adjective

prudish or puritanical
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012