pearl-clutching

or pearl clutch·ing

[ purl kluhch-ing ]

noun

1. outrage or dramatic protest, especially from a woman, caused by something the person perceives as vulgar, in bad taste, or morally wrong but that does not elicit a similarly strong reaction from most other people:

   pearl-clutching over sexual jokes; so much fake pearl-clutching by the candidates.

adjective

1. noting or relating to someone, especially a woman, who is easily offended or shocked by things the person perceives as vulgar, in bad taste, or morally wrong:

   pearl-clutching gasps from the audience; pearl-clutching conservatives.

Other Words From

• pearl-clutch verb (used without object)
• pearl-clutch·er noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of pearl-clutching¹

First recorded in 2000–05; pearl ( def ), clutch ¹( def ), -ing ¹( def ), -ing ²( def )

Example Sentences

Walz in particular has used the line that Trump is “weird” to great effect, treating Trump’s brashness not with pearl-clutching indignation but cheeky Midwest derision.

From Los Angeles Times

The attitude is in keeping, though, with Swift’s latest album, “The Tortured Poets Department,” particularly in a song like “But Daddy I Love Him,” in which she appears to be mocking the pearl-clutching contingent of her fan base that disapproved of her rumored pre-Kelce relationship with Matty Healy of the 1975 because of offensive jokes he’d made.

From Los Angeles Times

NBC was also able to integrate entertainment figures into its Olympics coverage without generating a lot of pearl-clutching from sports purists.

From Los Angeles Times

Here’s the story from whence this pearl-clutching about Harris stems: For roughly one year in the mid-1990s when she was 29 years old, Harris dated 60-year-old San Francisco politician Willie Brown, who was technically married but had been separated from his wife since the early ’80s.

From Slate

Only to shame you pearl-clutching adult babies who are shocked—shocked!—that students aren’t always intellectually and emotionally consistent!

From Slate