as in Victorian
given to or marked by very conservative standards regarding personal behavior or morals
some of the state laws concerning sexual behavior are vestiges of a more puritanical time and are rarely, if ever, enforced
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of puritanical
With their charismatic leadership, organizational skills, puritanical ideology, and internal solidarity, HTS and other militant groups were the unintended beneficiaries.
—
Fawaz A. Gerges, Foreign Affairs, 27 Jan. 2025
By then, America had become a lot less puritanical.
—Michael Schulman, The New Yorker, 22 Dec. 2024
Babygirl tries to deftly waltz over this minefield of a topic without a sense of puritanical judgement or heavy panting, but with as much emphasis on Romy’s need for this transfer of power to tap into her erogenous zones.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 23 Dec. 2024
Gein was born in 1906 to an alcoholic father and an allegedly fanatically puritanical mother, according to the MGM+ docuseries Psycho: The Lost Tapes of Ed Gein.
—Jordana Comiter, People.com, 23 Nov. 2024
See All Example Sentences for puritanical
Fawaz A. Gerges, Foreign Affairs, 27 Jan. 2025
By then, America had become a lot less puritanical.
—Michael Schulman, The New Yorker, 22 Dec. 2024
Babygirl tries to deftly waltz over this minefield of a topic without a sense of puritanical judgement or heavy panting, but with as much emphasis on Romy’s need for this transfer of power to tap into her erogenous zones.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 23 Dec. 2024
Gein was born in 1906 to an alcoholic father and an allegedly fanatically puritanical mother, according to the MGM+ docuseries Psycho: The Lost Tapes of Ed Gein.
—Jordana Comiter, People.com, 23 Nov. 2024
See All Example Sentences for puritanical
Recent Examples of Synonyms for puritanical
Victorian
Adjective
-
In the story, a Victorian husband attempts to drive his heiress wife insane by subtly rearranging reality, most notably by dimming their house’s gas lighting.—
Matthew Wills,
JSTOR Daily,
8 May 2025
-
The London sewers were originally constructed during the Victorian era, when the capital city held just around four million people.—
Meredith Kile,
People.com,
7 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Puritanical.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/puritanical. Accessed 22 May. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share