subtext

noun

sub·​text ˈsəb-ˌtekst 

: the implicit or metaphorical meaning (as of a literary text)

subtextual

ˌsəb-ˈteks-chə-wəl 

-chəl

adjective

subtextually adverb

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A literary text often has more than one meaning: the literal meaning of the words on the page, and their hidden meaning, what exists "between the lines"—the subtext. Arthur Miller's play The Crucible, for example, is about the Salem witchcraft trials of the 17th century, but its subtext is the comparison of those trials with the "witch hunts" of the 1950s, when many people were unfairly accused of being communists. Even a social conversation between a man and a woman may have a subtext, but you may have to listen very closely to figure out what it is. Don't confuse subtext with subplot, a less important plot that moves along in parallel with the main plot.

Examples of subtext in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Like much of the rest of the film—about a woman who goes missing on a remote Italian island—the moment has been endlessly scrutinized for its striking imagery and subtext. —Rob Ledonne, Vogue, 6 June 2025

Holden’s performance is predatory but feminine, menacing but soft-eyed — a powerful example of how lesbian subtext in early Hollywood paved the way for future Sapphic vampires. —Erik Piepenburg, New York Times, 2 June 2025

The movie renders conversations about money and love as text, not subtext. —Eliana Dockterman, Time, 6 May 2025

No longer was the show building season-long plots around how megachurch culture has helped turn modern-day Christianity into a hotbed of self-congratulation and greed; that was now subtext. —Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 5 May 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1862, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for subtext

• complexed
• deflexed
• perplexed
• plaintext
• pretext
• reflexed
• ciphertext
• hypertext
• multiplexed
• teletext
• flexed
• next