précieuse
/prɛsˈjəːz/Usually depreciative
noun
A person, especially a woman, aspiring to or affecting a refined delicacy of language and taste; an over-refined or absurdly fastidious woman.
adjective
Over-refined; affectedly fastidious in taste and language.
Origin
Mid 17th century; earliest use found in Richard Flecknoe (c1605–?1677), poet and playwright. From French précieuse, †prétieuse refined woman, woman affecting refinement, use as noun of the feminine of précieux precious, popularized by Molière in Les précieuses ridicules, a comedy which satirizes the ladies frequenting the literary salons of Paris in the mid 17th cent.
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