as in warm
formal + usually disapproving
having or showing too much interest in sex
He took a prurient interest in their personal life. a book that appealed to the prurient curiosity of its readers
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Recent Examples of prurient
In the decades that followed, the media took a similarly prurient tack in its coverage of women’s competitive swimming.
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Sophia Stewart, The Atlantic, 21 June 2024
But beyond it, Morgan sketches a real Manhattan ruled by prurient and destructive masculine appetites, from subway tunnels occupied by ad hoc homeless communities to office towers where the city’s most powerful residents impose their wills on millions of fellow New Yorkers.
—Judy Berman, TIME, 31 May 2024
That might also have had something to do with a male protagonist being less subject to the prurient aspects of Sorrentino’s gaze.
—David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 21 May 2024
The common theme emerging from these politically conservative Marylanders is that Maryland public school librarians have nothing substantial to offer regarding the protection of young minds from prurient interests.
—Reader Commentary, Baltimore Sun, 18 Mar. 2024
See all Example Sentences for prurient 
Sophia Stewart, The Atlantic, 21 June 2024
But beyond it, Morgan sketches a real Manhattan ruled by prurient and destructive masculine appetites, from subway tunnels occupied by ad hoc homeless communities to office towers where the city’s most powerful residents impose their wills on millions of fellow New Yorkers.
—Judy Berman, TIME, 31 May 2024
That might also have had something to do with a male protagonist being less subject to the prurient aspects of Sorrentino’s gaze.
—David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 21 May 2024
The common theme emerging from these politically conservative Marylanders is that Maryland public school librarians have nothing substantial to offer regarding the protection of young minds from prurient interests.
—Reader Commentary, Baltimore Sun, 18 Mar. 2024
See all Example Sentences for prurient
Recent Examples of Synonyms for prurient
Adjective
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If frostbite occurs, move indoors, remove wet clothing, and soak the affected body part in warm water.Amanda Castro, Newsweek, 18 Dec. 2024
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Scientists expect the iceberg to head toward South Georgia island where warmer water is likely to trigger a breakup of the big berg into smaller chunks.Amanda Kooser, Forbes, 17 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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Most of my writing energy went into composing my vast unpublishable novels, one and then another.Andrew Cockburn, Harper's Magazine, 22 Aug. 2024
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Contemporary critics tend to breeze through the last two decades of Schwartz’s life, hitting only the saddest events: the second divorce; the increasing alcoholism; the unpublishable poems, many written during bouts of mania; the money problems; the undignified death.Maggie Doherty, The New Yorker, 15 Apr. 2024
Adjective
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Bright and fruity with plenty of herbs and juniper essence and an almost spicy zip on the palate.Joseph V Micallef, Forbes, 18 Dec. 2024
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Then there are the darker, spicier vanillas, with hints of tobacco or amber, offering a more sultry, sophisticated vibe.Conçetta Ciarlo, Vogue, 18 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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Blink Twice nods at a tangle of different contemporary ailments: lifestyle fetishism, wellness hedonism, our obscene fealty to stolid tech bros and their untrammeled wealth.Sophie Gilbert, The Atlantic, 6 Dec. 2024
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Many are short baby names—partly because Australia prohibits long names, obscene words, and names with symbols or too many hyphens.1 Here are some of our favorite boys' names from the land down under.Sherri Gordon, Parents, 2 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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Joe Urias was arrested on charges of lewd and lascivious behavior, burglary of an unoccupied structure, marijuana possession and battery on an officer, according to an arrest affidavit obtained by PEOPLE.Christine Pelisek, People.com, 5 Dec. 2024
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The Victorian-era Comstock Act is a law that prohibits sending lewd or lascivious material, like pornography, or any material intended for producing abortions, like the drug mifepristone, through the mail.Hannah Gaskill, Baltimore Sun, 11 Nov. 2024
Adjective
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Orange Beach has a vulgarity ordinance on the books, which was enacted about a decade ago amid concerns about vulgar or indecent T-shirts and other merchandise sold at souvenir stores.al, al, 20 Jan. 2023
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Because there are more good people than indecent ones.Jack Irvin, Peoplemag, 12 Jan. 2023
Adjective
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Police say the man kept asking the girl suggestive questions, asked for photographs and sent some of himself.Ron Wood, arkansasonline.com, 10 Dec. 2024
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Their spinsterhood took on an ominous cast, their celibacy no longer evidence of pure, Christian love, but now suggestive of physical, emotional, and intellectual degeneracy.Natalie Kinkade, JSTOR Daily, 25 Sep. 2024
Adjective
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They were packed in the ships’ holds in filthy conditions reminiscent of their initial arrival in North America, their prospects of freedom largely unchanged by the war.Kinsey Gidick, Smithsonian Magazine, 12 Dec. 2024
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Don't let a little plumbing snafu make your dishwasher filthy.Jessica Farthing, Southern Living, 8 Dec. 2024
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Cite this Entry
“Prurient.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/prurient. Accessed 21 Dec. 2024.
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