Definition of censorship
1a : the institution, system, or practice of censoring They oppose government censorship.b : the actions or practices of censors; especially : censorial control exercised repressively censorship that has … permitted a very limited dispersion of facts — Philip Wylie
2 : the office, power, or term of a Roman censor
3 : exclusion from consciousness by the psychic censor
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Recent Examples of censorship from the Web
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Fresh crackdowns, censorship and war are again rejuvenating their ranks.
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After a fresh round of news reports about the censorship on Monday, including on the front page of The Financial Times, Chinese internet users took to social media sites to test the ban.
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Thanks to tight censorship, most Chinese had no idea Liu had even won the Nobel.
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But big corporate media does face enough regulatory matters that even a single exemplary case would suffice to induce large-scale self-censorship.
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But human rights experts and the companies affected warn that the law risks privatizing the process of censorship and could have a chilling effect on free speech.
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Free-speech advocates say that the Canadian ruling will be used to justify government censorship of the Internet.
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Pop quiz: Which group is protected by Facebook’s secret censorship algorithm?
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Many artists took to expressing themes of censorship and sexual liberation.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'censorship.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Origin and Etymology of censorship
Other Government and Politics Terms
CENSORSHIP Defined for English Language Learners
censorship
playDefinition of censorship for English Language Learners
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: the system or practice of censoring books, movies, letters, etc.
CENSORSHIP Defined for Kids
censorship
playDefinition of censorship for Students
: the system or practice of examining writings or movies and taking out things considered offensive or immoral
Medical Dictionary
Law Dictionary
censorship
Legal Definition of censorship
: the institution, system, or practice of censoring — compare freedom of speech, prior restraint
Learn More about censorship
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See words that rhyme with censorship Spanish Central: Translation of censorship Nglish: Translation of censorship for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of censorship for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about censorship
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