straight-laced

[streyt-leyst] / ˈstreɪtˈleɪst /

ADJECTIVE

strait-laced

Synonyms

WEAK

Victorian austere goody-two-shoes old-maidish priggish prim prissy proper prudish puritanical rigid square starchy stiff strict stuffy uptight

Antonyms

STRONGEST

permissive

WEAK

broad-minded

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Cornyn, by contrast, is a straight-laced institutional conservative who has represented Texas in the Senate since 2002 and built deep ties with the state's donor class and Republican leadership in Washington.

From Barron's • May 26, 2026

But as time has passed, his appearances has been marked by artists and actors wrestling with his godlike nobility and wanting to question his straight-laced nature.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 7, 2026

But they’ve also tried to be funny, whereas LinkedIn is a bit more straight-laced: There is no such thing as Weird LinkedIn.

From Slate • Nov. 10, 2023

Sure, there are still traditional 30-minute, multi-camera, studio-audience sitcoms; and plenty of straight-laced, laugh-free serious dramas.

From Los Angeles Times • May 31, 2023

“I suppose,” Miss Cullam said to her girls, “that a perfectly straight-laced New England old maid could not be set down in a more inappropriate place than a mining camp.”

From Ruth Fielding In the Saddle College Girls in the Land of Gold by Emerson, Alice B.