bowdlerizer
- noun
- /ˈbaʊdləˌraɪzər/
- Literature
- The new editor acted as a bowdlerizer, cutting several scenes from the novel.
Examples
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Some readers criticized him as a bowdlerizer for sanitizing the language of classic works.
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She refused to be a bowdlerizer and insisted the play be performed in its original form.
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The bowdlerizer removed several passages from the novel.
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I can't believe a bowdlerizer edited that classic work!
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The bowdlerizer changed the text to make it more suitable for children by removing inappropriate content.
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As a well-known bowdlerizer, she often revised classic literature to fit modern sensibilities.
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Critics labeled him a bowdlerizer after he altered the original script, omitting any language considered offensive.
Synonyms
28
5.5
A person who removes parts of books and films that are offensive or about politics
1
8.6
A person who edits and prepares text for publication, shaping its form
1
5.5
A person who checks and corrects text before publishing
1
6.8
A person who checks and corrects writing before it is published
1
7.8
Something that changes written records or adds errors
A person who removes obscene or offensive parts from a text
How Censoring
Surface Forms
Morphology
bowdlerizer = bowdlerize (semi-transparent) = bowdler + ize + er
Forming an agent noun by adding '-er' to the verb 'bowdlerize' is a regular and clear morphological process.
Etymology
The word bowdlerizer comes from the name Bowdler, after Thomas Bowdler, who made a 'clean' edition of Shakespeare by cutting parts he thought were improper. So a bowdlerizer is someone who 'cleans' a text by removing words or scenes that might offend.