puritanism
noun
\
Definition of puritanism
1 capitalized : the beliefs and practices characteristic of the Puritans
2 : strictness and austerity especially in matters of religion or conduct
Keep scrolling for more
Synonyms for puritanism
Synonyms
moralism, nice-nellyism, prudery, prudishness
Visit the Thesaurus for More
Examples of puritanism in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The stigma is part of a creeping puritanism that has stifled the arts in Egypt in recent decades. — Declan Walsh, New York Times, "Foreign Belly Dancers? Egyptians Shake Their Heads (and Hips)," 8 July 2018 There is a certain amount of puritanism that exists in the United States. — Ceylan Yeginsu, New York Times, "Benetton ‘Migrants’ Ads Draw Outrage for Using Photos of Real Migrants," 21 June 2018 As a result, indie rock’s penchant for puritanism and subcultural snobbery was dwindling, and authenticity was beginning to be privileged over obscurity. — Emma Madden, Billboard, "How The Yeah Yeahs' 'Maps' Helped Change the Way We View the Relationship Between Pop and Indie," 26 Apr. 2018 Season One established a fallen version of America, explaining that the country collapsed following a rapid decline in fertility rates, which prompted the rise of a totalitarian government founded on puritanism and misogyny. — Emma Dibdin, Esquire, "Everything We Know About The Handmaid's Tale Season Two Right Now," 22 Feb. 2018 But the party’s puritanism is at odds with the tastes of young Chinese. — The Economist, "Rappers’ knuckles rappedWhy hip-hop scares the Chinese Communist Party," 25 Jan. 2018 Our puritanism, that is, permits and fosters the politically pornographic. — Rhonda Garelick, The Cut, "Stormy Daniels Is to Trump As Trump Is to America," 23 Jan. 2018 And puritanism was pushed hard as a response to a double political shock in 1979: the siege of the Great Mosque in Mecca by Sunni extremists; and the Islamic revolution in Iran, which became ruled by radical Shia clerics. — The Economist, "Driving changeSaudi Arabia will finally allow women to drive," 27 Sep. 2017 And puritanism was pushed hard as a response to a double political shock in 1979: the siege of the Great Mosque in Mecca by Sunni extremists — The Economist, "Driving changeSaudi Arabia will finally allow women to drive," 27 Sep. 2017These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'puritanism.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Keep scrolling for more
Keep scrolling for more
More Definitions for puritanism
puritanism
noun
English Language Learners Definition of puritanism
Puritanism : the beliefs and practices of Puritans
: the beliefs and practices of people who follow very strict moral and religious rules about the proper way to behave and live
See the full definition for puritanism in the English Language Learners Dictionary
Keep scrolling for more
Comments on puritanism
What made you want to look up puritanism? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).
Test Your Vocabulary
Late Autumn 2018 Words of the Day Quiz
-
- Which is a synonym of yahoo?
Test your knowledge - and maybe learn something along the way.
TAKE THE QUIZ
Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.
TAKE THE QUIZ
Share puritanism
Resources for puritanism