prunes and prisms

prunes and prisms
noun plural
: affected, primly precise, or priggish speech or behavior

go atiptoe and talk prunes and prisms — C.G.D.Roberts

their prunes and prisms young daughters — Bruce Marshall

* * *

prunes and prisms
1. Part of a formula for setting the lips into a pleasing shape, ‘serviceable in the formation of a demeanour’ (Dickens, Little Dorrit)
2. Hence (often prisms) a somewhat prim manner of speaking, or any trivial and superficial refinement
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Main Entry: ↑prune

Useful english dictionary. 2012.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • prunes and prisms — manners, courtesy …   English contemporary dictionary

  • image — Synonyms and related words: Doppelganger, Vorstellung, abstract, abstraction, adumbrate, affectation, affectedness, airs, airs and graces, allusion, ally, altarpiece, alter ego, analogon, analogue, angle, apparition, appearance, apprehension,… …   Moby Thesaurus

  • airs — Synonyms and related words: affectation, affectedness, airs and graces, arrogance, artificiality, clannishness, cliquishness, contempt, contemptuousness, contumely, despite, disdain, disdainfulness, disparagement, exclusiveness, facade, false… …   Moby Thesaurus

  • facade — Synonyms and related words: acting, affectation, affectedness, airs, airs and graces, alibi, anteriority, apology, apparent character, appearance, appearances, artificiality, attitudinizing, blind, bluff, bluffing, bold front, border, brave face …   Moby Thesaurus

  • false front — Synonyms and related words: acting, affectation, affectedness, airs, airs and graces, anteriority, appearance, artificiality, attitudinizing, blazon, bluff, bluffing, bold front, brave face, brave front, bravura, brilliancy, camouflage, cheating …   Moby Thesaurus

  • false show — Synonyms and related words: Prospero, acting, affectation, affectedness, airiness, airs, airs and graces, appearance, artificiality, attitudinizing, bluff, bluffing, cheating, color, coloring, deception, delusion, delusiveness, disguise,… …   Moby Thesaurus

  • front — Synonyms and related words: CAT, Charlie McCarthy, DMZ, accented, aceldama, act for, acting, advance, advance guard, aerospace, aerosphere, affectation, affectedness, affront, agent, ahead, air, air hole, air mass, air pocket, airhead, airs, airs …   Moby Thesaurus

  • hypocrisy — Synonyms and related words: Pecksniffery, Pharisaism, Tartuffery, Tartuffism, affectation, affectedness, airs, airs and graces, artfulness, artificiality, cant, casuistry, charlatanism, charlatanry, chicanery, craft, cunning, deceit,… …   Moby Thesaurus

  • insincerity — Synonyms and related words: Tartuffery, Tartuffism, affectation, affectedness, airs, airs and graces, apparent soundness, artfulness, artificiality, cant, casuistry, circularity, craftiness, credibility gap, crossed fingers, deceitfulness,… …   Moby Thesaurus

  • mannerism — Synonyms and related words: Gongorism, affectation, affectedness, airs, airs and graces, aroma, artfulness, artifice, artificiality, attribute, badge, brand, cachet, cast, character, characteristic, command of language, configuration, cut,… …   Moby Thesaurus

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