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expurgate

[ ek-sper-geyt ]
/ ˈɛk spərˌgeɪt /
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See synonyms for: expurgate / expurgated / expurgation on Thesaurus.com
verb (used with object), ex·pur·gat·ed, ex·pur·gat·ing.
to amend by removing words, passages, etc., deemed offensive or objectionable: Most children read an expurgated version of Grimms' fairy tales.
to purge or cleanse of moral offensiveness.
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Origin of expurgate

1615–25; <Latin expurgātus, past participle of expurgāre to clean out. See ex-1, purge, -ate1

OTHER WORDS FROM expurgate

ex·pur·ga·tion, nounex·pur·ga·tor, nounun·ex·pur·gat·ed, adjective

Words nearby expurgate

expulse, expulsion, expulsive, expunction, expunge, expurgate, expurgatorial, expurgatory, expwy, exquisite, exquisitely
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Words related to expurgate

bleep, bowdlerize, cleanse, decontaminate, lustrate, purge, purify, sanitize, screen, scrub, squash, sterilize, blip, blue pencil, clean up

How to use expurgate in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for expurgate

expurgate
/ (ˈɛkspəˌɡeɪt) /
verb
(tr) to amend (a book, text, etc) by removing (obscene or offensive sections)

Derived forms of expurgate

expurgation, nounexpurgator, nounexpurgatory (ɛksˈpɜːɡətərɪ, -trɪ) or expurgatorial (ɛkˌspɜːɡəˈtɔːrɪəl), adjective

Word Origin for expurgate

C17: from Latin expurgāre to clean out, from purgāre to purify; see purge
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Cultural definitions for expurgate

expurgate
[ (ek-spuhr-gayt) ]

To clean up, remove impurities. An expurgated edition of a book has had offensive words or descriptions changed or removed.

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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