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• edit
  edit

  verb (used with object)

  to supervise or direct the preparation of (a newspaper, magazine, book, etc.); serve as editor of; direct the editorial policies of.
• edit.
  edit.

  abbreviation

  edited.

edit

¹ American  

[ed-it] / ˈɛd ɪt /

verb (used with object)

• edits,
  present (3rd person singular)
• edited,
  past participle,  past
• editing
  present participle

1. to supervise or direct the preparation of (a newspaper, magazine, book, etc.); serve as editor of; direct the editorial policies of.

2. to collect, prepare, and arrange (materials) for publication.

3. to revise or correct, as a manuscript.

4. to expunge; eliminate (often followed byout ).

   The author has edited out all references to his own family.

5. to add (usually followed byin ).

6. to prepare (motion-picture film, video or magnetic tape) by deleting, arranging, and splicing, by synchronizing the sound record with the film, etc.

7. Genetics. to alter the arrangement of (genes).

8. Computers. to modify or add to (data or text).

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noun

• edits
  plural

1. an instance of or the work of editing.

   automated machinery that allows a rapid edit of incoming news.

edit. ² American  

abbreviation

1. edited.

2. edition.

3. editor.

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edit British  

/ ˈɛdɪt /

verb

1. to prepare (text) for publication by checking and improving its accuracy, clarity, etc

2. to be in charge of (a publication, esp a periodical)

   he edits the local newspaper

3. to prepare (a film, tape, etc) by rearrangement, selection, or rejection of previously filmed or taped material

4. (tr) to modify (a computer file) by, for example, deleting, inserting, moving, or copying text

5. (often foll by out) to remove (incorrect or unwanted matter), as from a manuscript or film

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noun

1. informal an act of editing

   give the book a final edit

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• overedit
  verb
• misedit
  verb (used with object)
• reedit
  verb (used with object)
• unedited
  adjective
• well-edited
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• edits
  plural

Participles

• editing
  present
• edited
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• edit
  simple
• edits
  simple
• have edited
  perfect
• has edited
  perfect
• am editing
  progressive
• are editing
  progressive
• is editing
  progressive
• have been editing
  perfect progressive
• has been editing
  perfect progressive

Past

• edited
  simple
• had edited
  perfect
• was editing
  progressive
• were editing
  progressive
• had been editing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will edit
  simple
• will have edited
  perfect
• will be editing
  progressive
• will have been editing
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of edit

First recorded in 1785–95; 1915–20 edit for def. 6; partly back formation from editor, partly from French éditer, verb derivative of Latin ēditus “published, given out,” past participle of ēdere “to give out,” from ē- e- ¹ + -dere, combining form of dare “to give” ( cf. datum)

Explanation

The verb edit means to prepare writing for publication by correcting, revising, or proofreading. If you write for a newspaper, someone very skilled will edit your work before the public sees it. Edit can also mean to cut out. If you edit out all the references to Harry Potter from the famous series, you'll be left with much shorter books. Edit likely comes from the noun editor, meaning the person in charge of a final version of a text. You might also hear edit used when referring to video or film. If you edit a television show, for example, you assemble pieces of video or film footage to create a complete program.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

edit edit. edits edited editing

Those lines were actually spoken nearly an hour apart, and the BBC has apologized for how the edit was constructed.

From Salon ● Aug. 18, 2026

Conrad: The Barry White song they danced to came in the edit.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 17, 2026

Job seekers are also taking steps to edit terms out of their profiles that might be less enticing to employers today than just a few years ago.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 13, 2026

In the months before, Lisa says a public relations agency had been tasked with producing AI-generated material that she and her colleagues were asked to edit.

From BBC ● Aug. 4, 2026

It’s twelve minutes long, and I want to edit it down to ten minutes, but I think it’s pretty good.

From "Finding Junie Kim" by Ellen Oh

“You cannot edit. You’re dealing with real sets and real props, lit by real light. Stop-motion is to live-action what Ginger Rogers is to Fred Astaire: We do the same steps, backwards in high heels.”

From New York Times ● Jan. 3, 2023

"You're properly live, you can get people on the phone, and it's just happening in that moment. And whatever you say, that's it, there's no edit. And I've really enjoyed the slot."

From BBC ● Oct. 12, 2022

Far from being depressing, Prengaman said that “it’s a really rewarding thing to work on, to edit. It really teaches you the value of people’s lives.”

From Washington Times ● Jun. 3, 2020

“He could write. He could edit. He could design pages. He was just a jack of all trades and a fantastic person.”

From The Guardian ● Jun. 29, 2018

When I was handed this story, I just thought, “Oh wow, another story to edit. Gee, this is great! I wish I could do this every day.”

From "The Freedom Writers Diary" by The Freedom Writers

Then cinematographers Evan Draper and Jazleana Jones along with Ullom, who also edits, take a steadier hand with evocative montages that emphasize the passage of time.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 19, 2026

Its politics unfolded through "fit checks" - showing your outfit - "Get Ready With Me" videos, first-person vlogs, memes and sardonic edits.

From BBC ● Jul. 29, 2026

Content tagged #backrooms on TikTok exceeds half a million posts, while Instagram fan pages such as @xbackroom, which have hundreds of thousands of followers, further extend the mythology through images, edits and speculative storytelling.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 26, 2026

People post photos old and new, blurry and clear, and ask for edits ranging from “Please remove my ex” to “Give me long hair” to “Make this look like a professional headshot.”

From Slate ● Jul. 19, 2026

Doesn’t she know by now that I’m just a nerd who edits the school literary magazine?

From "Ask the Passengers" by A.S. King

According to listing agent Thomas Raigeul of Sotheby’s International Realty, he “at times edited films” in the home, where he was living while working on projects like “Miss Congeniality” and “Nacho Libre.”

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 21, 2026

The following is a condensed, edited version of our conversation.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 19, 2026

Changing tastes in comedy have affected how multicams are edited.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 10, 2026

The following excerpt of their conversation has been edited and condensed for clarity.

From Slate ● Aug. 10, 2026

Adams also knew full well thatRush was sending edited versions of his letters to Jefferson, removing the potentially offensive passages.

From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis

The broadcaster has previously apologised for editing together two different sections of the speech he gave before the 2021 Capitol riots.

From BBC ● Aug. 18, 2026

According to Pangram, A.I.-assisted writing “is text a person wrote partly with help from an AI tool—for example, editing or rewriting parts.”

From Slate ● Aug. 18, 2026

Despite zero filming, graphics or editing experience, they decided to document their journey on social media as Tastebuds.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026

In a clip on his personal TikTok, Burnham, thanks to clever editing, appears to toss up a mortarboard hat and catch a builder's helmet, as he promotes technical education.

From Barron's ● Aug. 16, 2026

He was editing footage for another one of his stupid Flush fan videos.

From "Book Scavenger" by Jennifer Chambliss Bertman

Related Words

• adapt
• alter
• analyze
• annotate
• arrange
• assemble
• censor
• choose
• compile
• compose
• delete
• prepare
• publish
• rearrange
• revise
• select