Prurient
adjective
Having or showing too much interest in sexual matters.
He was criticized for his prurient interest in the private lives of celebrities.
Often appears as...
- prurient interest
- prurient curiosity
Usage tips
Formal, Disapproving
adjective
Expressing or having a too strong interest in things related to sex.
The novel contains a few prurient scenes.
Often appears as...
- prurient literature
- prurient content
Usage tips
Formal, Disapproving
Literary
adjective
Having or showing too much interest in sexual matters.
He was criticized for his prurient interest in the private lives of celebrities.
Often appears as...
- prurient interest
- prurient curiosity
Usage tips
Formal, Disapproving
adjective
Expressing or having a too strong interest in things related to sex.
The novel contains a few prurient scenes.
Often appears as...
- prurient literature
- prurient content
Usage tips
Formal, Disapproving
Literary
Definition 1 of 2
Pro Tip 1/3Negative Connotation
Prurient often implies a disapproving or negative attitude toward someone else's sexual curiosity.
The journalist's prurient questions made the interviewee uncomfortable.
Pro Tip 2/3Avoid in Formality
Use with caution in formal settings due to its sexual connotations.
In a formal essay, it is better to avoid terms like 'prurient interest'.
Pro Tip 3/3Privacy Intrusion
'Prurient' is often used to critique unwanted intrusion into someone's private or sexual life.
The paparazzi are notorious for their prurient surveillance of celebrities.
Pro Tip 1/3Negative Connotation
Prurient often implies a disapproving or negative attitude toward someone else's sexual curiosity.
The journalist's prurient questions made the interviewee uncomfortable.
Pro Tip 2/3Avoid in Formality
Use with caution in formal settings due to its sexual connotations.
In a formal essay, it is better to avoid terms like 'prurient interest'.
Pro Tip 3/3Privacy Intrusion
'Prurient' is often used to critique unwanted intrusion into someone's private or sexual life.
The paparazzi are notorious for their prurient surveillance of celebrities.
Pro Tip 1/3Negative Connotation
Prurient often implies a disapproving or negative attitude toward someone else's sexual curiosity.
The journalist's prurient questions made the interviewee uncomfortable.
Pro Tip 2/3Avoid in Formality
Use with caution in formal settings due to its sexual connotations.
In a formal essay, it is better to avoid terms like 'prurient interest'.
Pro Tip 3/3Privacy Intrusion
'Prurient' is often used to critique unwanted intrusion into someone's private or sexual life.
The paparazzi are notorious for their prurient surveillance of celebrities.
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Video examples
Chip Kidd: The art of...
which I call editorial graffiti. This is a picture I took recently in the subway, and sometimes you see lots of prurient, stupid stuff, but I thought this was interesting, and this is a poster that is saying
Video examples
Chip Kidd: The art of...
which I call editorial graffiti. This is a picture I took recently in the subway, and sometimes you see lots of prurient, stupid stuff, but I thought this was interesting, and this is a poster that is saying
Example 1 of 1
Quote examples
Oscar Wilde
Irish Poet
Yes, there is a terrible moral in 'Dorian Gray' - a moral which the prurient will not be able to find in it, but it will be revealed to all whose minds are healthy. Is this an artistic error? I fear it is. It is the only error in the book.
Quote examples
Joanna Scott
American Author
With prurient absorption and only minimal risk, we can pretend to be the subject of the lead article on the front page of the Style section of our local newspaper for as long as it takes to finish our morning coffee.
Quote examples
George Gilder
American Writer
Television is not vulgar because people are vulgar; it is vulgar because people are similar in their prurient interests and sharply differentiated in their civilized concerns.
Quote examples
William J. Brennan, Jr.
American Judge
Sex and obscenity are not synonymous. Obscene material is material which deals with sex in a manner appealing to prurient interest.
Quote examples
Peter Landesman
American Director
There will always been the prurient rubbernecking aspect to disasters: people who just can't get enough gore.
Quote examples
Oscar Wilde
Irish Poet
Yes, there is a terrible moral in 'Dorian Gray' - a moral which the prurient will not be able to find in it, but it will be revealed to all whose minds are healthy. Is this an artistic error? I fear it is. It is the only error in the book.
Quote examples
Joanna Scott
American Author
With prurient absorption and only minimal risk, we can pretend to be the subject of the lead article on the front page of the Style section of our local newspaper for as long as it takes to finish our morning coffee.
Quote examples
George Gilder
American Writer
Television is not vulgar because people are vulgar; it is vulgar because people are similar in their prurient interests and sharply differentiated in their civilized concerns.
Quote examples
William J. Brennan, Jr.
American Judge
Sex and obscenity are not synonymous. Obscene material is material which deals with sex in a manner appealing to prurient interest.
Quote examples
Peter Landesman
American Director
There will always been the prurient rubbernecking aspect to disasters: people who just can't get enough gore.
Example 1 of 5
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