overstarched
Excessively crisp fabric
Overstarched describes fabric, especially clothing, that has been treated with too much starch, making it excessively stiff and uncomfortable: The overstarched collar chafed his neck.
Figuratively, it characterizes someone or something as overly formal, rigid, or uptight: an overstarched bureaucrat, overstarched manners that put everyone on edge.
Unable to bend
- uptightAnxiously rigid in manner
- stiffNot easily bent
- formalFollowing strict protocol
- unbendingRefusing to change position
unyielding · inflexible · prim · proper · priggish · punctilious · strait-laced · humorless
Firm and breakable
- rigidUnable to bend
- stiffenedMade or became rigid
- boardlikeResembling a flat timber
- scratchyRough and irritating
crinkly · rustling · uncomfortable · unyielding · inflexible · unbending · coarse · rough
Lacking fresh air
- primAffectedly proper and stiff
- properSocially appropriate
- buttoned-upFormally reserved, emotionally guarded
- ceremonialRelating to formal rites
black-tie · white-tie · livery · butler · servant · maid · housekeeper · Victorian
Old-fashioned or courted
- antiquatedOld and outdated
- fustyStale from disuse
- VictorianOf a prim era
- EdwardianOf early twentieth-century Britain
bygone · quaint · outdated · old-world · traditional · prim · proper · yesteryear
rigid
Unable to bend
unbending · unyielding · inflexible · prim · proper · priggish · punctilious · strait-laced · humorless · stuffy
crisp
Firm and breakable
scratchy · crinkly · rustling · uncomfortable · unyielding · inflexible · unbending · coarse · rough · harsh
stuffy
Lacking fresh air
- primAffectedly proper and stiff
- properSocially appropriate
- buttoned-upFormally reserved, emotionally guarded
ceremonial · black-tie · white-tie · livery · butler · servant · maid · housekeeper · Victorian · Edwardian
dated
Old-fashioned or courted
- antiquatedOld and outdated
- fustyStale from disuse
- VictorianOf a prim era
Edwardian · bygone · quaint · outdated · old-world · traditional · prim · proper · yesteryear · nostalgic
overstarchedunstarched
Lacking fabric stiffener
unstiffened · untreated · natural · unwashed
starch, starchy, starched, cornstarch, starching, unstarched, starchiness, starchless