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

The debate will be a subtext -- and likely flare publicly -- as thousands of activists, influencers and Republican lawmakers gather at the Conservative Political Action Conference that began Wednesday outside Dallas. —Arkansas Online, 26 Mar. 2026

The debate will be a subtext — and likely flare publicly — as thousands of activists, influencers and Republican lawmakers gather at the Conservative Political Action Conference that begins Wednesday outside Dallas. —Thomas Beaumont, Los Angeles Times, 25 Mar. 2026

The debate will be a subtext — and likely flare publicly — as thousands of activists, influencers and Republican lawmakers gather at the Conservative Political Action Conference that begins Wednesday outside Dallas. —ABC News, 24 Mar. 2026

Short sentences, subtext that carries more weight than the dialogue, two chairs, the landscape of our village. —Jd Linville, Variety, 24 Mar. 2026

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