red-penciling

verb

present participle of red-pencil
1
as in amending
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
2
as in censoring
to remove objectionable parts from a television script that had been heavily red-penciled in abject surrender to political correctness

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for red-penciling
  1. amending
  2. censoring
  3. correcting
  4. shortening
  5. reforming
  6. rewriting
Verb
  • The Bridgewater woman started working at the Quincy RMV in 2019 and was in charge of transactions that included issuing duplicate titles, changing ownership, amending and correcting titles, and adding liens.
    — Matt Schooley, CBS News, 28 Oct. 2026
  • In addition to candidates, the Maryland ballot contains three ballot questions amending the state’s constitution.
    — Letters to the Editor, Washington Post, 26 Oct. 2026
Definition of amending
Verb
  • Equal-time rule doesn’t apply, group says The equal-time rule prohibits broadcast stations from censoring or rejecting political ads paid for and sponsored by legally qualified candidates.
    — ArsTechnica, ArsTechnica, 29 Sep. 2026
  • Earlier in the week, Kraft allegedly led a pressure campaign to force the Seattle rapper off Ed Sheeran’s The Loop Tour, igniting a firestorm of backlash from artists and fans accusing Kraft of censoring Macklemore’s free speech.
    — Charisma Madarang, Rolling Stone, 16 Sep. 2026
Definition of censoring
Verb
  • Depending on your yard’s condition, renovation may involve killing existing vegetation, correcting the soil, improving drainage, and planting a more suitable grass variety.
    — Jessica Safavimehr, Southern Living, 3 Nov. 2026
  • Byrd said the rejection notice did not clearly explain what went wrong or provide instructions for correcting the application.
    — Nakell Williams, CBS News, 2 Nov. 2026
Definition of correcting
Verb
  • Her ever-shortening list of agents associated with Wildflower leads her to attempt to team up again with Laila, who Conteh says was dropped from active duty about six months ago and has been AWOL ever since.
    — Sophie Brookover, Vulture, 5 Nov. 2026
  • Leaves are falling, days are shortening, and there’s a chill in the air.
    — Phil Plait, Scientific American, 30 Oct. 2026
Definition of shortening
Verb
  • Across the country, Democrats stood up for big policy changes like increasing the federal minimum wage, expanding child care, reining in Big Tech, data centers, and AI, and reforming health care.
    — Sen. Elizabeth Warren, Time, 5 Nov. 2026
  • According to his campaign, his priorities include protecting federal workers, lowering living costs, improving public safety, reforming the criminal justice system and defending civil liberties.
    — CBS Baltimore, CBS News, 4 Nov. 2026
Definition of reforming
Verb
  • The language of the legislation that passed the House calls for an immediate adoption of year-round daylight saving time by rewriting a federal law that sets time across the country.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 2 Nov. 2026
  • So far, Ford says, the commitment is to a set of principles for rewriting interconnection rules.
    — Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 27 Oct. 2026
Definition of rewriting
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.

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red-penciled
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Cite this Entry

“Red-penciling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/red-penciling. Accessed 11 Nov. 2026.

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