Prig

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /pɹɪɡ/

Definitions

1. A self-righteous person who is smugly moralistic and disapproves of others' behavior as inferior to their own standards
2. Someone who behaves in an overly proper and judgmental way, believing they are morally superior to others
3. A person who acts so prudish and self-important that they constantly criticize others' conduct

Etymology: The origin of "prig" is unknown, which makes it a word whose early meaning is more useful to trace than its source. In the 16th century the noun was used for a tinker, a traveling mender of pots and kettles, and also for a thief. Those senses describe people society looked down on, and that disapproving attitude seems to have carried over when the word began to mean a conceited person. Over time the sense narrowed further. A prig came to be someone who was smugly sure of his own virtue, fussy about manners and rules, and quick to correct others. The shift from a common craftsman or petty criminal to a self-satisfied moralizer is a striking one, and it happened without any clear record of how the connection was made.

Synonyms: snob, pedant

Antonyms: boor, vulgarian