Tartuffery

Word of the Day for Tuesday, September 18, 2012

Tartuffery \tahr-TOOF-uh-ree\, noun:

Behaviour or character of a Tartuffe, especially hypocritical piety.

When Terry had finished showing his contempt and had left the office in disgust at the head's Tartuffery, Jan had calmly got up from her seat and looked hard at the shell-shocked, speechless woman before addressing her.
-- Derryl Flynn, The Albion

Not the sophistry, the malevolence, the restless apathy of the masses, the arrogance and insensitivity of the ruling class, the vulgarity, the bigotry, the intemperance, the maniacal piety and the ungodly Tartuffery.
-- W.E. Gutman, Nocturnes

Tartuffery comes from the comedy by French playwright Molière. The central character of the eponymous play Tartuffe was a hypocritical pretender.

Thanks to: www.dictionary.com