Examples of urtext in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Although not a summer noir in the strict sense, this silent film classic by German director F. W. Murnau is the urtext for all subsequent cautionary tales about summer temptation.
—
Erik Morse, Vogue, 26 June 2025
Though the white paper that introduced bitcoin’s origins and philosophy—something of an urtext for crypto overall—does not discuss politics per se, cryptocurrency was quickly adopted and championed by cyberlibertarians.
—Charlie Warzel, The Atlantic, 11 Dec. 2024
Both of these tropes have their origin in 1947’s Miracle on 34th Street, the urtext for Santa magic in Hollywood movies.
—Katie Rife, Vulture, 16 Nov. 2024
Meryl Streep won an Oscar for her soul-bearing performance, serving as the urtext for the actress' ability to truly transform into her characters.
—Kevin Jacobsen, EW.com, 1 Aug. 2023
The anti-Economicist urtext was published in 1944 by Karl Polanyi, an émigré Austrian socialist then teaching at Bennington.
—Timothy Noah, The New Republic, 25 Oct. 2022
The urtext of film history that inspired the careers of dozens of film historians, including this one.
—Scott Eyman, WSJ, 20 Nov. 2020
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Erik Morse, Vogue, 26 June 2025
Though the white paper that introduced bitcoin’s origins and philosophy—something of an urtext for crypto overall—does not discuss politics per se, cryptocurrency was quickly adopted and championed by cyberlibertarians.
—Charlie Warzel, The Atlantic, 11 Dec. 2024
Both of these tropes have their origin in 1947’s Miracle on 34th Street, the urtext for Santa magic in Hollywood movies.
—Katie Rife, Vulture, 16 Nov. 2024
Meryl Streep won an Oscar for her soul-bearing performance, serving as the urtext for the actress' ability to truly transform into her characters.
—Kevin Jacobsen, EW.com, 1 Aug. 2023
The anti-Economicist urtext was published in 1944 by Karl Polanyi, an émigré Austrian socialist then teaching at Bennington.
—Timothy Noah, The New Republic, 25 Oct. 2022
The urtext of film history that inspired the careers of dozens of film historians, including this one.
—Scott Eyman, WSJ, 20 Nov. 2020
Cite this Entry
“Urtext.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/urtext. Accessed 15 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share