censor

1 of 2

noun

cen·​sor ˈsen(t)-sər 

1

: a person who supervises conduct and morals: such as

a

: an official who examines materials (such as publications or films) for objectionable matter

Government censors deleted all references to the protest.

b

: an official (as in time of war) who reads communications (such as letters) and deletes material considered sensitive or harmful

2

: one of two magistrates of early Rome acting as census takers, assessors, and inspectors of morals and conduct

Cato the Censor accused Africanus and his senior officers of running an army riddled with moral laxity

—Colleen McCullough

3

: a hypothetical psychic agency that represses unacceptable notions before they reach consciousness

censorial

sen-ˈsȯr-ē-əl 

adjective

censor

2 of 2

verb

censored; censoring ˈsen(t)-sə-riŋ 

ˈsen(t)s-riŋ

transitive verb

: to examine in order to suppress (see suppress sense 2) or delete anything considered objectionable

censor the news

also : to suppress or delete as objectionable

censor out indecent passages

Synonyms

Verb

• bowdlerize
• clean (up)
• expurgate
• launder
• red-pencil

Examples of censor in a Sentence

Noun

Government censors deleted all references to the protest.

Verb

The station censored her speech before broadcasting it.

His report was heavily censored.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

But Heiss was not aware, or did not want to be aware, of the pleasure of loving Prima while avoiding the eyes of the censors. —Lillian Fishman, New Yorker, 4 May 2025

Caught off guard, NBC’s network censors let the expletive slip through on the broadcast for the East Coast but for later viewers removed the curse word from the show as well as from social media clips. —Michelle Deal-Zimmerman, Baltimore Sun, 7 Apr. 2025

Verb

Cutting funds relevant to these groups or censoring materials reflecting their experiences deepens their marginalization and chills dissent. —Laura Backstrom, Scientific American, 8 May 2025

These friendships were broken up by violence, censored in films or simply abandoned by women themselves in the face of the dominant patriarchal norms. —Laura Mills, Los Angeles Times, 7 May 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun

borrowed from Latin cēnsor "Roman magistrate tasked with registering citizens, removing persons from the register whose conduct was found wanting, and leasing public contracts," from cēnsēre "to give as an opinion, assess, appraise, perform the duties of a censor" (going back to an Indo-European verbal base *ḱems- "announce, evaluate publicly," whence Sanskrit śaṁati "declares solemnly, praises," Avestan sənghaitī "announces, names") + -tor, agent suffix

Verb

derivative of censor entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

1526, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1882, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for censor

• censer
• denser
• fencer
• sensor
• tensor
• biosensor
• condenser
• dispenser
• extensor

Kids Definition

censor

1 of 2 noun

cen·​sor ˈsen(t)-sər 

: an official who checks materials (as publications or movies) to take out things thought to be objectionable

censor

2 of 2 verb

censored; censoring ˈsen(t)s-(ə-)riŋ 

: to examine in order to prevent publication or take out things thought to be objectionable

also : to delete things thought to be objectionable

Medical Definition

censor

noun

cen·​sor ˈsen(t)-sər 

: a hypothetical psychic agency that represses unacceptable notions before they reach consciousness

censorial

sen-ˈsōr-ē-əl, -ˈsȯr- 

adjective

Legal Definition

censor

1 of 2 transitive verb

cen·​sor

: to examine (as a publication or film) in order to suppress or delete any contents considered objectionable

censor

2 of 2 noun

: one that censors