as in stick-in-the-mud
informal + disapproving
a person (such as a child) whose good behavior and politeness are annoying because they seem to be excessive or not sincere
The other kids don't like her because she's a goody-goody.
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in pious
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in priggish
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of goody-goody
Fletcher Peters, Vulture, 1 Aug. 2024
This somewhat spotty touring production stars Lauren Samuels as the misunderstood villain Elphaba and Austen Danielle Bohmer as the goody-goody Glinda, the iconic characters originally played by Idina Mendel and Kristin Chenoweth.
—Karen D'souza, The Mercury News, 31 Aug. 2024
Advertisement Gwen Grastorf’s embodiment of the scheming goody-goody Arsinoë is a tad stagy, but the character is still a fine foil for the quick-witted Célimène.
—Celia Wren, Washington Post, 4 May 2023
The Trump rule presumed these goody-goody considerations got in the way of profitability and that a retirement adviser who accommodated them couldn’t fulfill his professional responsibility to maximize his client’s return.
—Timothy Noah, The New Republic, 3 Mar. 2023
Adjective
But the tension between evil Max and goody-goody Pippa makes my heart do backflips.
—Fletcher Peters, Vulture, 1 Aug. 2024
This somewhat spotty touring production stars Lauren Samuels as the misunderstood villain Elphaba and Austen Danielle Bohmer as the goody-goody Glinda, the iconic characters originally played by Idina Mendel and Kristin Chenoweth.
—Karen D'souza, The Mercury News, 31 Aug. 2024
Advertisement Gwen Grastorf’s embodiment of the scheming goody-goody Arsinoë is a tad stagy, but the character is still a fine foil for the quick-witted Célimène.
—Celia Wren, Washington Post, 4 May 2023
The Trump rule presumed these goody-goody considerations got in the way of profitability and that a retirement adviser who accommodated them couldn’t fulfill his professional responsibility to maximize his client’s return.
—Timothy Noah, The New Republic, 3 Mar. 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for goody-goody
Noun
-
David Corenswet plays, quite literally, a stick-in-the-mud character.—
Brian Davids,
The Hollywood Reporter,
3 Sep. 2019
-
In the Herbert Ross film, Bacon played big-city teen Ren McCormack, who moves to the small town of Bomont, where its stick-in-the-mud local minster, the Rev. Shaw Moore (John Lithgow), has instituted a ban on dancing.—
EW.com,
EW.com,
9 Nov. 2023
Adjective
-
Advertisement Nazanin goes through the same preparations as Salme, who has turned supremely pious in the intervening years, and Zari, who has grown more level-headed, not to say jaded.—
Charles McNulty,
Los Angeles Times,
21 Jan. 2025
-
If some punters were irritatingly pious, many also had the time of their life.—
Martin McKenzie-Murray,
SPIN,
7 Jan. 2025
Noun
-
Cancers, symbolized by the crab, are notorious for being nurturing, protective, and moody.—
Maya Layne,
Vogue,
14 Feb. 2025
-
There’s the obligatory seafood tower ($115), which depending on the season might include shucked oysters, spiny lobster, Santa Barbara uni and succulent chunks of Dungeness crab.—
John Metcalfe,
The Mercury News,
14 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
Cigarettes were first popularized in a more moralistic era.—
Cal Newport,
The New Yorker,
22 Jan. 2025
-
How Polarizing Messaging Hurt DEI DEI often positioned itself as a solution to deep social problems, but its prescriptive and moralistic tone alienated some employees and customers.—
Gillian Oakenfull,
Forbes,
13 Jan. 2025
Adjective
-
The Comstock Act is a relic, not just of a more prudish era in American history, but of an age when the sort of individual rights that modern Americans take for granted effectively did not exist.—
Ian Millhiser,
Vox,
27 May 2024
-
Emily, perhaps true to her prudish Adderall-y millennial type, is not especially flirty.—
Jackson McHenry,
Vulture,
16 Aug. 2024
Noun
-
Her characters were women whose roles often implied their own eventual replacements: teachers, fading former love interests, fuddy-duddy old-fashioned relics.—
Kathryn VanArendonk,
Vulture,
27 Sep. 2024
-
The good news is that for every fuddy-duddy like myself who can’t seem to get on board with crowdfunding kids’ lives, there are twice as many generous, kind-hearted individuals willing to give a little—or a lot—toward schools, sports, and charities.—
Melissa Willets,
Parents,
3 Feb. 2024
Adjective
-
Each is open-minded and empathetic, though neither is sanctimonious about those qualities.—
Judy Berman,
TIME,
22 Jan. 2025
-
Unmatched in its warmth, its delightful disposition, its ability to inspire you—not with high fashion or sanctimonious pontificating or streets walled with money—but just by being its easy, sunny self.—
Allure Editors,
Allure,
17 Jan. 2025
Adjective
-
Who can forget the sparkling black halterneck dress worn by Isabella Rossellini’s femme fatale lounge singer in Blue Velvet, or the prim cardigans worn by Naomi Watts in Muholland Drive as Betty, a wide-eyed, small-town girl arriving in Los Angeles for the first time?—
Liam Hess,
Vogue,
17 Jan. 2025
-
One sketch, vetoed by the network, had Tomlin playing a prim mother, Mrs. Beasley, calling her son in from the back yard, which was actually a war zone, ablaze with exploding mortar shells.—
Susan Morrison,
The New Yorker,
13 Jan. 2025
Articles Related to goody-goody
Thesaurus Entries Near goody-goody
Cite this Entry
“Goody-goody.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/goody-goody. Accessed 21 Feb. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share