Commonly confused words: censor, sensor, censer, and censure
This week's commonly confused words will include three homonyms, censor, censer, and sensor, as well as censure, which has a slightly different pronunciation but is often confused with them. The examples will be using our friends at Person of Interest.
A censor is an 'official who examines materials' that haven't been released and suppresses any parts that are considered obscene, politically incorrect, or a threat to security. Censor is also a verb that describes the act of officially examining and suppressing unacceptable material. The word originates with the Latin word censere, which means 'to assess'. For example, when a movie airs on network TV it might have swearing removed via dubbing and any inappropriate scenes removed . That's why you might find, when later watching something on DVD, there are somewhat risqué scenes you don't remember from some of your favourite movies. An examples of using censor is:
John wanted to contact Jessica, but knew that any attempt to communicate would be censored by his handlers at the CIA.
Related to censor and sometimes confused with it is censure. However, while censor is about revising or cutting unacceptable parts from something, censure means to 'criticize harshly' or 'express severe disapproval'. It might also be used to describe an official reprimand. Like censor, censure is both a noun and verb, though the verb form needs to be used with an object -- in other words, you need to censure something. The word comes into English from Old French and originates in the Latin censura, meaning 'judgement, assessment', which itself is derived from the Latin censere as censor is. An example of censure is:
John sat down, frustrated. He needed to track down their new number but couldn't risk being censured by the Captain again.
Spelled similarly but having a quite different meaning is censer. A censer is a 'container in which incense is burned'. The word originates with the Latin incendere, meaning 'to burn', but just by looking at the words it's possible to see how censer relates to incense. When pronouncing censer, I emphasize the 'er' sound at the end of the word and so would pronounce it slightly differently to censor where I emphasize the 'or' ending of the word. When written, though, this is one of those words which would come up correct in a spell check but not be the word that should be used -- so it's important to make sure you differentiate correctly. An example of censer is:
Finch stood at the back of the church, silently grieving as the priest waved the censer around Carter's casket.
Our last word is sensor which, while sounding exactly the same as censor, is a 'device that detects or measures physical properties' and then does something with that information -- records it, displays the information in some manner, or responds to it. So while this may sound the same as censer and censor, it definitely doesn't mean the same thing. This is also the word that is probably the most well known of the words we're looking at today, as we see the results of it every day. The speedometer and the fuel gauge in our cars, or the thermometer we look at outside our window, all work based on sensors. An example of sensor is:
Reese checked the feed from the motion sensor to ensure there were no Samaritan operatives approaching.
So how to keep these words apart? Easiest is likely sensor, because that relates to sensing things. Your five senses are used to detect things around you, just like a sensor does. Next you can think of an censer as it relates to incense -- the last five letters of incense make up the first five of censer. When something is censored, then it's revised or cut. Like cut, censor starts with a 'c', which helps us remember which word to use. And lastly, with censure, you should be sure before you criticize anything harshly, and 'sure' is at the end of censure.
Sources
Censor definition: http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/american_english/censor
Sensor definition: http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/american_english/sensor
Censure definition: http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/american_english/censure
Censer definition: http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/american_english/censer
A censor is an 'official who examines materials' that haven't been released and suppresses any parts that are considered obscene, politically incorrect, or a threat to security. Censor is also a verb that describes the act of officially examining and suppressing unacceptable material. The word originates with the Latin word censere, which means 'to assess'. For example, when a movie airs on network TV it might have swearing removed via dubbing and any inappropriate scenes removed . That's why you might find, when later watching something on DVD, there are somewhat risqué scenes you don't remember from some of your favourite movies. An examples of using censor is:
John wanted to contact Jessica, but knew that any attempt to communicate would be censored by his handlers at the CIA.
Related to censor and sometimes confused with it is censure. However, while censor is about revising or cutting unacceptable parts from something, censure means to 'criticize harshly' or 'express severe disapproval'. It might also be used to describe an official reprimand. Like censor, censure is both a noun and verb, though the verb form needs to be used with an object -- in other words, you need to censure something. The word comes into English from Old French and originates in the Latin censura, meaning 'judgement, assessment', which itself is derived from the Latin censere as censor is. An example of censure is:
John sat down, frustrated. He needed to track down their new number but couldn't risk being censured by the Captain again.
Spelled similarly but having a quite different meaning is censer. A censer is a 'container in which incense is burned'. The word originates with the Latin incendere, meaning 'to burn', but just by looking at the words it's possible to see how censer relates to incense. When pronouncing censer, I emphasize the 'er' sound at the end of the word and so would pronounce it slightly differently to censor where I emphasize the 'or' ending of the word. When written, though, this is one of those words which would come up correct in a spell check but not be the word that should be used -- so it's important to make sure you differentiate correctly. An example of censer is:
Finch stood at the back of the church, silently grieving as the priest waved the censer around Carter's casket.
Our last word is sensor which, while sounding exactly the same as censor, is a 'device that detects or measures physical properties' and then does something with that information -- records it, displays the information in some manner, or responds to it. So while this may sound the same as censer and censor, it definitely doesn't mean the same thing. This is also the word that is probably the most well known of the words we're looking at today, as we see the results of it every day. The speedometer and the fuel gauge in our cars, or the thermometer we look at outside our window, all work based on sensors. An example of sensor is:
Reese checked the feed from the motion sensor to ensure there were no Samaritan operatives approaching.
So how to keep these words apart? Easiest is likely sensor, because that relates to sensing things. Your five senses are used to detect things around you, just like a sensor does. Next you can think of an censer as it relates to incense -- the last five letters of incense make up the first five of censer. When something is censored, then it's revised or cut. Like cut, censor starts with a 'c', which helps us remember which word to use. And lastly, with censure, you should be sure before you criticize anything harshly, and 'sure' is at the end of censure.
Sources
Censor definition: http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/american_english/censor
Sensor definition: http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/american_english/sensor
Censure definition: http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/american_english/censure
Censer definition: http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/american_english/censer