/ prɪg; NAmE / noun
( disapproving ) a person who behaves in a morally correct way and who shows that they disapprove of what other people do
► prig·gish adjective
► prig·gish·ness noun [ U ]
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WORD ORIGIN
mid 16th cent.: of unknown origin. The earliest sense was tinker or petty thief , which led to the sense disliked person , especially someone who is affectedly and self-consciously precise (late 17th cent.).