prudishness

a tendency to care a great deal about seemly behavior and morals especially in sexual matters the prudishness of the people of the Victorian era was a hindrance to the dissemination of some basic information on human health and hygiene Synonyms moralism, nice-nellyism, prudery, puritanismRelated Words Comstockery; old-maidishness, priggery, priggishness, primness; morality, virtueNear Antonyms lechery, prurience, pruriency; libertinage, libertinism; libertarianism