RED-PENCIL Synonyms: 74 Similar and Opposite Words

red-pencil

verb

ˈred-ˌpen(t)-səl

Definition of red-pencil

as in to amend

to remove errors, defects, deficiencies, or deviations from the magazine claims that every article is red-penciled by a team of fact checkers before it ever sees the light of print

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in to censor

to remove objectionable parts from a television script that had been heavily red-penciled in abject surrender to political correctness

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of red-pencil The book is a literary arrangement of sparring between D’Agata and Fingal, consisting of a draft of D’Agata’s text red-pencilled by editors and extensive correspondence between the two writers. — Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 21 Apr. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for red-pencil

Verb

The city amended its 2023 agreement with Goldenrod in August 2024 to give the company more time to complete the project.

— Harrison Mantas, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 22 July 2026
Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema to amend the filibuster so the party could pass voting rights legislation four years ago, arguing voting rights mattered more than a procedural rule.

— Juhi Doshi, ABC News, 22 July 2026

Definition of amend

Verb

Ana Navarro and Joy Behar were both censored on The View today.

— Emlyn Travis, Entertainment Weekly, 16 July 2026
The lawsuit says the sanctions, triggered by ICC war-crimes probes in Gaza, have forced groups to halt evidence-sharing, cut ties with Palestinian advocates and censor their own speech.

— Eric Tucker, Los Angeles Times, 15 July 2026

Definition of censor

Verb

High jump is a technical event — while physiology matters, the winner tends to be decided by who can best correct their errors as the bar goes up.

— Liam Tharme, New York Times, 25 July 2026
The difficult part was measuring the distortions accurately enough such that the correcting heat could be applied with exact precision.

— Sharmila Kuthunur, Space.com, 25 July 2026

Definition of correct

Verb

Halpin, primarily leaned upon for his speed and defensive prowess, worked with hitting coach Grant Fink between games of a doubleheader Saturday on shortening his swing.

— Zack Meisel, New York Times, 21 July 2026
That approach allows engineers to simplify development and shorten the path to production for platforms that do not require extended service lives.

— Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 21 July 2026

Definition of shorten

Verb

The original duo last performed together in 2016, and Roxette reformed in 2024 with Gessle and Swedish singer Lena Philipsson.

— Greg Evans, Deadline, 25 July 2026
Merz took office less than 15 months ago with pledges to reform and turn around Germany’s economy, Europe’s biggest, after years of stagnation.

— ABC News, ABC News, 24 July 2026

Definition of reform

Verb

How the Chiefs will remedy the problems that ended their 10-year playoff run — including three Super Bowl victories — begins later this week.

— Blair Kerkhoff, Kansas City Star, 21 July 2026
The government and its private sector partners who are eager to onboard as many new little customers as possible have at least taken the opportunity to try to remedy the lack of basic financial education among American children and their caregivers.

— Marie Sapirie, Forbes.com, 20 July 2026

Definition of remedy

Browse Nearby Words

redounds

red-pencil

red-penciled

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Cite this Entry

Style

“Red-pencil.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/red-pencil. Accessed 29 Jul. 2026.

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Synonyms of red-pencil

verb

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