From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishbowdlerizebowd‧ler‧ize (also bowdlerise British English) /ˈbaʊdləraɪz/ verb [transitive] ALto remove all the parts of a book, play etc that you think might offend someone – used to show disapproval a bowdlerized version of ‘Antony and Cleopatra’→ See Verb tableOrigin bowdlerize (1800-1900) Thomas Bowdler (1754-1825), English editor who removed impolite words from Shakespeare's plays
