Word of the Day

: October 1, 2017

censure

verb SEN-sher

What It Means

: to find fault with and criticize as blameworthy

censure in Context

"The Government's power to censor the press was abolished so that the press would remain forever free to censure the Government." — Supreme Court Justice Hugo Black, New York Times v. United States, 1971

"No president has ever been removed by impeachment. No president has ever been indicted. No president has been censured since 1860." — Hannah Ryan, Newsweek, 20 Aug. 2017

Did You Know?

Censure and its synonyms criticize, reprehend, condemn, and denounce all essentially mean "to find fault with openly." Additionally, censure carries a strong suggestion of authority and often refers to an official action. Criticize implies finding fault with someone's methods, policies, or intentions, as in "the commentator criticized the manager's bullpen strategy." Reprehend implies sharp criticism or disapproval, as in "a teacher who reprehends poor grammar." Condemn usually suggests a final unfavorable judgment, as in "the group condemned the court's decision." Denounce adds to condemn the implication of a public declaration, as in "her letter to the editor denounced the corrupt actions of the mayor's office."