prude

See also prüde, and prudé

English

Etymology

From French prude, from Old French prude, prode, feminine of prou, prod, prud (“good, excellent, brave”), from Latin. Related to proud but unrelated to prudent.

Pronunciation

• enPR: pro͞od, IPA: /pruːd/, X-SAMPA: /pru:d/
• Rhymes: -uːd

Noun

prude (plural prudes)

1. A person who is or tries to be excessively proper, especially one who is easily offended by matters of a sexual nature.
   • 1991, Robert M. Pirsig, Lila:

     If you didn't go for Lila you're some kind of prissy old prude. If you did go for her you were some kind of dirty old man.

Synonyms

• prig
• goody-goody
• puritan
• celibacist
• erotophobe
• antisexualist

Derived terms

• prudery
• prudish

Related terms

• proud

Translations

A person who is or tries to be excessively proper

• Danish: sippe (da) c, snerpe (da) c
• Dutch: preut (nl)
• Esperanto: prudulo (eo)
• Finnish: sievistelijä
• French: prude (fr), bégueule (fr) m and f

• German: prüde Person f
• Hungarian: prűd (hu)
• Portuguese: pudico (pt) f
• Russian: святоша (ru) (svjatoša) c
• Tagalog: maliyoso f

External links

• prude in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913
• prude in The Century Dictionary, The Century Co., New York, 1911

Anagrams

• drupe, duper, perdu

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Italian

Verb

prude

1. third-person singular present indicative of prudere

Anagrams

• drupe

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Old French

Adjective

prude

1. feminine form of pruz