Collet monté - the fashionable French phrase just for the prudish

The phrase Etre collet monté, which can be attributed to someone deemed prissy or prim, uptight, straight-laced or even pretentious, has its origins in French fashion history.

Back in 1533, when Italian Catherine de Médicis married French King Henri II, she brought with her some native traditions to France. The most famous of all was her ruff, which consisted of pieces of white cloth held straight and stiff with iron wire and starch, covering the entire neck area.

The word collet stems from cou, the French word for neck, while monté comes from the idea of making the collar high – monter means to climb or ascend.

Médicis liked to impose her preferences on her people, so she obliged all noble men and women to follow this style.

But following her death in 1589, the fashion disappeared with her. Yet the expression emerged straight afterwards, to refer to someone or something that was old-fashioned.

Over the years it developed and was used to also refer to traditionalists, which people considered de Medicis to be.

Given that the ruffs were so delicate and fragile, it was assumed that anyone wearing one was unlikely to have indulged in many indecent indiscretions – which lead to the added implication of prudishness.

The French version of Little Miss Prim, in the Mr Men series by Roger Hargreaves, is Madame Collet-Monté.