censor

American  

[sen-ser] / ˈsɛn sər /

noun

• censors
  plural

1. an official who examines books, plays, news reports, motion pictures, radio and television programs, letters, cablegrams, etc., for the purpose of suppressing parts deemed objectionable on moral, political, military, or other grounds.

2. any person who supervises the manners or morality of others.

3. an adverse critic; faultfinder.

4. (in the ancient Roman republic) either of two officials who kept the register or census of the citizens, awarded public contracts, and supervised manners and morals.

5. (in early Freudian dream theory) the force that represses ideas, impulses, and feelings, and prevents them from entering consciousness in their original, undisguised forms.

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verb (used with object)

• censors,
  present (3rd person singular)
• censored,
  past participle,  past
• censoring
  present participle

1. to examine and act upon as a censor.

2. to delete (a word or passage of text) in one's capacity as a censor.

censor British  

/ ˈsɛnsə, sɛnˈsɔːrɪəl /

noun

1. a person authorized to examine publications, theatrical presentations, films, letters, etc, in order to suppress in whole or part those considered obscene, politically unacceptable, etc

2. any person who controls or suppresses the behaviour of others, usually on moral grounds

3. (in republican Rome) either of two senior magistrates elected to keep the list of citizens up to date, control aspects of public finance, and supervise public morals

4. psychoanal the postulated factor responsible for regulating the translation of ideas and desires from the unconscious to the conscious mind See also superego

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verb

1. to ban or cut portions of (a publication, film, letter, etc)

2. to act as a censor of (behaviour, etc)

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• overcensor
  verb (used with object)
• precensor
  verb (used with object)
• recensor
  verb (used with object)
• anticensorial
  adjective
• censorable
  adjective
• censorial
  adjective
• censorian
  adjective
• noncensored
  adjective
• uncensorable
  adjective
• uncensored
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• censors
  plural

Participles

• censoring
  present
• censored
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• censor
  simple
• censors
  simple
• have censored
  perfect
• has censored
  perfect
• am censoring
  progressive
• are censoring
  progressive
• is censoring
  progressive
• have been censoring
  perfect progressive
• has been censoring
  perfect progressive

Past

• censored
  simple
• had censored
  perfect
• was censoring
  progressive
• were censoring
  progressive
• had been censoring
  perfect progressive

Future

• will censor
  simple
• will have censored
  perfect
• will be censoring
  progressive
• will have been censoring
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of censor

First recorded in 1525–35; from Latin cēnsor, from cēns(ēre) “to give as one's opinion, recommend, assess” + -tor -tor; -sor instead of expected -stor by analogy with tōnsor “barber,” and similarly derived nouns ( see tonsorial)

Explanation

A censor takes out things that are objectionable or inappropriate, like the censors at the TV networks bleeping out all the bad words in a show. To put it simply, a censor judges. Originating in the 1530’s, a censor was originally a Roman magistrate who took censuses and oversaw public morals. Censors today are hired by TV stations, publishers and the government to examine books, films and other material and strip out or flag all the amoral, offensive or otherwise bad stuff. Thankfully, in the U.S. free speech usually wins out over censorship.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

censor censors censored censoring

A: Being censored by others is one thing but I do not censor myself.

From Barron's ● May 21, 2026

David Loy, the legal director for the nonpartisan First Amendment Coalition, said the measure would censor the free speech of all citizens, not just those who defamed or threatened immigrant aid workers.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 4, 2026

And we better hope they do, for the sake of so many other media enterprises Carr will undoubtedly pursue and hope to censor.

From Slate ● Apr. 29, 2026

Yulia, who owns a catering company, explains how attempts to censor the internet have affected her business.

From BBC ● Apr. 24, 2026

Often, Winnie’s visits were overseen by Warrant Officer James Gregory, who had been a censor on Robben Island.

From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela

He reposted most but they were often deleted by censors, who warned that his account could be closed.

From BBC ● Jul. 1, 2026

Being perceived as the victim of censors is a surefire way to gain interest in what you’re saying.

From Salon ● Apr. 29, 2026

For audiences long used to polished TV comedy, the impact felt electric: humour that was not defined by censors but was messy, daring and alive in real time.

From BBC ● Apr. 10, 2026

Lantern and other tools are constantly discovering new approaches or vulnerabilities, while censors such as Iran discover new ways to shut them down.

From Barron's ● Mar. 20, 2026

“Yeah, but it’s your mom who censors his mail, right? Couldn’t I just drop a letter in the stack of already-censored mail?”

From "Al Capone Does My Shirts" by Gennifer Choldenko

In recent years it has censored its statements, avoided calls for protest and zealously guarded its marginal influence.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 22, 2026

“Who has been censored here? Name one journalist whom we have censored? There isn’t one.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2026

It is hard to say why this, of all the sensitive issues that are censored in China, has galvanised such pushback.

From BBC ● Jul. 22, 2026

“While data is imperfect and internet use remains heavily censored; we think the reports of restoration of connectivity implies the Iran regime expects a conclusion of the conflict is imminent,” Flight says.

From MarketWatch ● May 29, 2026

He did not want our parents to think that those letters of ours were censored in this way, and therefore he never allowed us to correct a spelling mistake in the letter itself.

From "Boy: Tales of a Childhood" by Roald Dahl

But they also encounter an authoritarian society, Ba Sing Se, where a shadow government maintains control over its population by censoring free expression.

From Salon ● Jul. 8, 2026

We are explicitly prohibited from censoring broadcasters, but this is censorship.

From Slate ● Jun. 2, 2026

As Salon has reported before, these things can appear extremely bright in the night sky, vexing astronomers and essentially censoring the stars.

From Salon ● Apr. 4, 2026

Mr. Hall, who made a highly publicized departure from the NIH after charging the agency’s leadership with censoring his work, surely has insights he could have shared.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 5, 2025

But Lyddie, who had never had any ambition to be thought a lady, did find herself asking, What would Amelia think?—and censoring her own behavior from time to time accordingly.

From "Lyddie" by Katherine Paterson

Related Words

• abridge
• black out
• blacklist
• delete
• edit
• excise
• restrict
• sanitize
• suppress
• withhold