censor
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.
any person who supervises the manners or morality of others.
an adverse critic; faultfinder.
(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.
(in early Freudian dream theory) the force that represses ideas, impulses, and feelings, and prevents them from entering consciousness in their original, undisguised forms.
to examine and act upon as a censor.
to delete (a word or passage of text) in one's capacity as a censor.
Origin of censor
1Other words from censor
- cen·sor·a·ble, adjective
- cen·so·ri·al [sen-sawr-ee-uhl, -sohr-], /sɛnˈsɔr i əl, -ˈsoʊr-/, cen·so·ri·an, adjective
- an·ti·cen·so·ri·al, adjective
- non·cen·sored, adjective
- o·ver·cen·sor, verb (used with object)
- pre·cen·sor, verb (used with object)
- re·cen·sor, verb (used with object)
- un·cen·sor·a·ble, adjective
- un·cen·sored, adjective
Words that may be confused with censor
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use censor in a sentence
When Internet censors purge references to “6/4,” users substitute “May 35.”
On the 25th Anniversary of Tiananmen Sq., Chinese Dissidents Remain Undaunted | Ellen Bork | June 2, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTThe new season doesn't need those tricks, because there's no need to dance around censors.
Although the film was reviewed by government censors, the participants obviously had no fear of lambasting the politicians.
‘The Gatekeepers,’ Brooklyn College BDS Forum: Week of Israel Debate | Gail Sheehy | February 8, 2013 | THE DAILY BEASTFor the most part, the censors are successfully keeping the public distracted.
A vast army of censors police Weibo for objectionable content, often deleting posts deemed politically sensitive or too salacious.
China Discovers Sex Online as Porn Invades Social Media | Dan Levin | August 23, 2012 | THE DAILY BEAST
This favour was doubtless the result of the Censors approval of Christian influence on public morals.
The Catacombs of Rome | William Henry WithrowIn spite of censors and police, the rising spirit showed itself in literature.
The Life of Mazzini | Bolton KingAs the censors were chosen only once in five years, vacancies in the Senate were filled only at such intervals.
The Two Great Republics: Rome and the United States | James Hamilton LewisThese new officials, called censors, were to be two in number and were to be elected every five years.
The Two Great Republics: Rome and the United States | James Hamilton LewisHis cable dispatch which began, "They will never call him Papa Pershing," did not get by the censors.
The Boy Grew Older | Heywood Broun
British Dictionary definitions for censor
/ (ˈsɛnsə) /
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
any person who controls or suppresses the behaviour of others, usually on moral grounds
(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
psychoanal the postulated factor responsible for regulating the translation of ideas and desires from the unconscious to the conscious mind: See also superego
to ban or cut portions of (a publication, film, letter, etc)
to act as a censor of (behaviour, etc)
Origin of censor
1Derived forms of censor
- censorable, adjective
- censorial (sɛnˈsɔːrɪəl), adjective
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
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