How to bleep out words in iMovie
There is no censor tool in iMovie, so a bleep is built from three ordinary edits: separate the sound from the picture, cut the word out of the sound and lay a beep over the gap. This guide follows iMovie on the Mac, with a section for iPhone and iPad.
Start by getting a beep. The free 1 kHz WAV on our sound page works well, and iMovie imports it like any other audio file.
Bleep a word in iMovie on a Mac
- Select the clip in the timeline and choose Modify, then Detach Audio. The sound now sits as a separate audio clip under the video.
- Move the playhead to the start of the swear word, select the audio clip and press Command-B (Modify, Split Clip). Do the same at the end of the word.
- Select the short piece that holds the word and press Delete, or drag its volume line all the way down to mute it.
- Drag the beep WAV from Finder into the timeline, under the video at the word. iMovie adds it there as an audio clip.
- Trim the beep by dragging its end so it covers only the word, then play that section back to check it.
- Repeat for each word and export with File, then Share.
On iPhone and iPad
The same idea works in iMovie for iPhone and iPad. Tap the clip, choose Detach under Actions to separate the sound, use Split at both ends of the word and turn the volume of that piece off.
Import the beep file into the project, place it under the word and drag its edges so it covers only the word.
Common problems
A bleep that starts a moment late lets the first sound of the word through. Zoom in on the timeline before you split, and split a frame early rather than late.
If the swear word sits over music in the same clip, muting it also silences the music for that moment. That is expected, and the beep covers the gap.
Faster: bleep the words automatically
Export the movie from iMovie, or take the original clip from Photos, and upload it here. BleepItOut finds the swear words in the speech, places the beeps for you and lets you check each one before you download. Bring the result back into iMovie if you still have editing to do.
Drop a video or audio file hereVideo or audio from your phoneLet go and the upload starts right away
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Questions and answers
How do you censor a word in iMovie?
Detach the audio from the clip, split the audio at the start and the end of the word, delete or mute that piece and put a beep over it. The steps above show where each command is.
Where do I get a beep sound for iMovie?
Download the free 1 kHz censor beep from our sound page as a WAV and drag it into the timeline. It is public domain (CC0), so you can use it in any video.
How do I mute part of a clip in iMovie without cutting the video?
Detach the audio first, then split only the audio clip and mute the piece you want silent. The video stays in one piece.
How do I bleep out words in iMovie on iPhone?
Tap the clip, choose Detach under Actions, split the detached audio at both ends of the word, turn the volume of that piece off and import a beep file under the word.
Is there a faster way than bleeping each word in iMovie?
Yes. Upload the video to BleepItOut: it transcribes the speech, marks the swear words and puts the beeps in, and you review them before downloading. The daily free limits are shown under the upload box.
Can I keep editing the bleeped file in iMovie?
Yes. The file you download is an ordinary video with the same picture, because BleepItOut copies the image without re-encoding it and changes only the sound of the covered words.