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.
Words nearby strait-laced
straining arch, straining piece, straining sill, strait, strait-lace, strait-laced, straiten, straitjacket, straits dollar, straits settlements, strake
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, nounDefinition for strait-laced (2 of 2)
strait-lace
[ streyt-leys ]
/ ˈstreɪtˌleɪs /
verb (used with object), strait-laced, strait-lac·ing.
to bind, confine, or restrain with or as if with laces.
Origin of strait-lace
First recorded in 1630–40; back formation from strait-laced
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for strait-laced
British Dictionary definitions for strait-laced
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