There are two plugins that can be used specifically to block specific words from appearing in posts: KeywordBlocker and Civil Tongue.

KeywordBlocker

The Keyword Blocker will send a post to the moderation queue if it contains a keyword that you have added to the plugin settings.

If a community member submits a post containing a blocked word, the post will show that it is awaiting moderator approval.

From the moderation queue, you can decide if you want to approve the post, delete it or take another action.

Civil Tongue

This plugin will replace words in posts that have been included in the plugin settings with a replacement word. For example, you can replace the word ‘crap’ with ‘blank’ or ‘****’.

If you are using to filter profanity, you’ll need to enter all variations of the word, for example ‘crap’, ‘crappy’, ‘crapping’, etc. If you search Google for ‘list of profanity’ you’ll find a few lists that you can copy into the plugin settings.

In this example, if a member includes a forbidden word in a post, the word will be replaced with ‘bleep’.

These plugins can help keep unwanted content from your website and complement your moderation process that might include community guidelines, peer-driven reactions and routine community hygiene.