Frump

You look like such a frump today!

“I don’t mind how many strange women you’ve loved so long as you don’t tell me about them.” “Women!” said Anthony, with a virtuous air. “Women indeed! You ask James here what kind of women I was going about with last time he saw me.” “Frumps,” said Jimmy solemnly. “Utter frumps. Not one a day under forty-five.”

Using the ideal of French female beauty as a stick with which to beat Britain's supposedly sexless frumps is a stereotype centuries old.

If you flipped through certain magazines at this time you could be forgiven for thinking that there was no right way to be a woman, only wrong ones — bimbo or frump, slut or prude, shrew or doormat.

Get that frump off – it's horrid!

Was ever gentlewoman So frump'd off with a fool!

1982, Lou Sullivan, personal diary, quoted in 2019, Ellis Martin, Zach Ozma (editors), We Both Laughed In Pleasure I told the guy "Well, now all I can do is come up with excuses" & told him I had to babysit. He frumped like, "Oh, shame!" and asked if I'd be there later.