Someone who is extremely strict about morality and behavior, taking puritan ideals to an exaggerated or fanatical extreme.
From 'arch-' (chief, extreme) + 'Puritan' (a member of a 16th-17th century Protestant movement demanding strict religious discipline). The combination emerged in historical religious polemics to mock excessive moral rigidity.
During the English Civil War, people used 'archpuritan' as an insult to describe Oliver Cromwell's most zealous supporters—those who wanted to remove all joy from life. It shows how language reflects the culture wars between religious reformers and their critics.
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