to supervise or direct the preparation of (a newspaper, magazine, book, etc.); serve as editor of; direct the editorial policies of.
to collect, prepare, and arrange (materials) for publication.
to revise or correct, as a manuscript.
to expunge; eliminate (often followed byout ).
The author has edited out all references to his own family.
to add (usually followed byin ).
to prepare (motion-picture film, video or magnetic tape) by deleting, arranging, and splicing, by synchronizing the sound record with the film, etc.
Genetics. to alter the arrangement of (genes).
Computers. to modify or add to (data or text).
edited.
edition.
editor.
to prepare (text) for publication by checking and improving its accuracy, clarity, etc
to be in charge of (a publication, esp a periodical)
he edits the local newspaper
to prepare (a film, tape, etc) by rearrangement, selection, or rejection of previously filmed or taped material
(tr) to modify (a computer file) by, for example, deleting, inserting, moving, or copying text
(often foll by out) to remove (incorrect or unwanted matter), as from a manuscript or film
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)
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.
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Apps like Wispr can now edit text in near real time, improving grammar and tone.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 10, 2026
But in overlooked microbial life, especially ciliates, evolution has repeatedly found ways to edit the instructions.
From Science Daily • May 7, 2026
“I’ve made narrative films in the past, but I also work as an editor, so I edit a lot of docs. I was, like, I can do this.”
From Salon • Apr. 28, 2026
Another ’90s question, sorry: Did it kill your soul to have to make a clean radio edit of “Semi-Charmed Life”? I don’t remember.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 23, 2026
Twenty or thirty thousand in the central city is more likely, according to Nicole Couture, a University of Chicago archaeologist who helped edit the definitive publication of Kolata's work in 2003.
From "1491" by Charles C. Mann
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
