From Latin 'censor,' a Roman magistrate who conducted the census and supervised public morals.
An official who examines material (books, films, news, correspondence) and suppresses parts deemed objectionable; to examine and suppress such material. Originally, a Roman magistrate responsible for the census and public morals.
From Latin 'cēnsor,' an agent noun from 'cēnsēre' (to assess, evaluate, judge, tax). The Roman censor was one of the most powerful magistrates of the Republic, responsible for conducting the census (population and property assessment), managing public finances, and supervising public morals ('regimen morum'). The morals-supervision role is the origin of the modern sense. Latin 'cēnsēre' derives from Proto-Indo-European *ḱens- (to speak
Cato the Elder held the office of censor in 184 BCE and wielded it with such severity — expelling senators from the Senate for moral failings, taxing luxury goods, and draining a water pipe that a senator had illegally connected to the public aqueduct — that his name became virtually synonymous with the office. The English word 'censorious' preserves this legacy of stern moral judgment.