bowdlerize
[ bohd-luh-rahyz, boud- ]
/ ˈboʊd ləˌraɪz, ˈbaʊd- /
verb (used with object), bowd·ler·ized, bowd·ler·iz·ing.
to expurgate (a written work) by removing or modifying passages considered vulgar or objectionable.
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Also especially British, bowd·ler·ise.
Origin of bowdlerize
1830–40; after Thomas Bowdler (1754–1825), English editor of an expurgated edition of Shakespeare
OTHER WORDS FROM bowdlerize
bowd·ler·ism, nounbowd·ler·i·za·tion, nounbowd·ler·iz·er, nounun·bowd·ler·ized, adjectiveWords nearby bowdlerize
bow window, bow-iron, bow-wow, bowditch, bowditch's law, bowdlerize, bowdlerizing, bowed, bowel, bowel bypass, bowel bypass syndrome
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020
Example sentences from the Web for bowdlerize
She should not be allowed to disguise and bowdlerize it to suit the unwelcome tastes she had acquired at school.
Joanna Godden|Sheila Kaye-SmithI have no wish to bowdlerize Sir Richard Steele, his ways and words.
Essays|Alice MeynellThis is called "expurgating" the book; but people who disapprove often call it to bowdlerize.
Stories That Words Tell Us|Elizabeth O'Neill
British Dictionary definitions for bowdlerize
bowdlerize
bowdlerise
/ (ˈbaʊdləˌraɪz) /
verb
(tr) to remove passages or words regarded as indecent from (a play, novel, etc); expurgate
Derived forms of bowdlerize
bowdlerization or bowdlerisation, nounbowdlerizer or bowdleriser, nounbowdlerism, nounWord Origin for bowdlerize
C19: after Thomas Bowdler (1754–1825), English editor who published an expurgated edition of Shakespeare
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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