Main Entry: ¹text

Pronunciation: \ˈtekst\

Function: noun

Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French tiste, texte, from Medieval Latin textus, from Latin, texture, context, from texere to weave — more at technical

Date: 14th century

1 a (1) : the original words and form of a written or printed work (2) : an edited or emended copy of an original work b : a work containing such text
2 a : the main body of printed or written matter on a page b : the principal part of a book exclusive of front and back matter c : the printed score of a musical composition
3 a (1) : a verse or passage of Scripture chosen especially for the subject of a sermon or for authoritative support (as for a doctrine) (2) : a passage from an authoritative source providing an introduction or basis (as for a speech) b : a source of information or authority
4 : theme, topic
5 a : the words of something (as a poem) set to music b : matter chiefly in the form of words or symbols that is treated as data for processing by computerized equipment <a text message>
6 : a type suitable for printing running text
7 : textbook
8 a : something (as a story or movie) considered as an object to be examined, explicated, or deconstructed b : something likened to a text <the surfaces of daily life are texts to be explicated — Michiko Kakutani>
9 : frame of reference 2 <updated to fit the women's lib text for consciousness raising — Judith Crist>