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/ˈbaʊd.ləˌɹaɪz/ · verb
(transitive) To remove or alter those parts of a text considered offensive, vulgar, or otherwise unseemly..
The bowdlerized version of the novel, while free of vulgarity, was also free of flavor.
Mr. Stanley decided to treat that as irrelevant. "There ought to be a Censorship of Books.[…]" Ogilvy pursued his own topic. "I'm inclined to think, Stanley, myself that as a matter of fact it was the expurgated 'Romeo and Juliet' did the mischief. […] All they left it was the moon and stars. And the balcony and 'My Romeo!'" "Shakespeare is altogether different from the modern stuff. Altogether different. I'm not discussing Shakespeare. I don't want to Bowdlerise Shakespeare.[…]"
"Wadley sent a message: 'The President of the Zoological Institute presents his compliments to Professor Challenger, and would take it as a personal favor if he would do them the honour to come to their next meeting.' The answer was unprintable." "You don't say?" "Well, a bowdlerized version of it would run: 'Professor Challenger presents his compliments to the President of the Zoological Institute, and would take it as a personal favour if he would go to the devil.'"
His critics take alarm only when it becomes apparent that he would bowdlerize Homer and exclude from his state the great tragedians.
Let me tell you about Madicken. (Mardie in English. Or Meg, but that’s in the American translation and that’s bowdlerized and you should never read it.)
Use bowdlerize when its meaning, tone and grammar fit the full sentence. A synonym is not always a direct replacement.
Bowdlerize means (transitive) To remove or alter those parts of a text considered offensive, vulgar, or otherwise unseemly..
Common synonyms include expurgate, bowdlerise, shorten.
The opposite depends on the specific sense.
The bowdlerized version of the novel, while free of vulgarity, was also free of flavor.
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