disenvowel

dis·en·vow·el
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UK/ˌdɪsɛnˈvaʊəl/UK/-ɪm-/US/ˌdɪsənˈvaʊ(ə)l/

A form of disemvowel — To remove the vowels from, for example, for the purpose of expurgating offensive words.

Scrabble 17
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Meanings

verbdisenvowel (third-person singular simple present disenvowels, present participle (US) disenvoweling or (UK) disenvowelling, simple past and past participle (US) disenvoweled or (UK) disenvowelled)

present singular third person disenvowels · US participle present disenvoweling · UK participle present disenvowelling · US participle past disenvoweled · US past disenvoweled · UK participle past disenvowelled · UK past disenvowelled

  1. alternativeAlternative form of disemvowel.

    Another swearing-curtailing device is to allow the taboo word but disenvowel it, so that fuck and cunt become "f-ck" and "c-nt."

    2005, Ruth Wajnryb, “Bootleggers and Asterisks”, in Expletive Deleted: A Good Look at Bad Language, New York, N.Y.: Free Press, →ISBN, page 187

Origin

Compare envowel.

Full word history & related roots →

Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with disenvowel

Powellfoulowltowelbowelvowelfowlhowlgrowlcowlprowltroweldoweljouleafoulaulscowljowlavowaldisavowaldisembowelyowlbefoulcawl
All rhymes →
Cite this entry
APA

disenvowel. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/disenvowel

MLA

“disenvowel.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/disenvowel. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “disenvowel,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/disenvowel.

Source: disenvowel on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.