puritan

Concise Oxford English Dictionary © 2008 Oxford University Press:
puritan /ˈpjʊərɪt(ə)n/

▶noun

• 1 (Puritan) a member of a group of English Protestants who regarded the Reformation of the Church under Elizabeth I as incomplete and sought to simplify and regulate forms of worship.

• 2 a person with censorious moral beliefs, especially about self-indulgence and sex.

▶adjective

• 1 (Puritan) relating to the Puritans.

• 2 characteristic of a puritan.

– derivatives
puritanism noun.

– origin C16: from late L. puritas ‘purity’ + -an.