text definition

English text definition

Etymology

From Middle English text, from Old French texte (“text”), from Medieval Latin textus (“the Scriptures, text, treatise”), from Latin textus (“style or texture of a work”), perfect passive participle of texō (“I weave”). Cognate to English texture.

Pronunciation

• enPR: tĕkst, IPA^(key): /tɛkst/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɛkst
• Hyphenation: text

Noun

text (countable and uncountable, plural texts)

1. A writing consisting of multiple glyphs, characters, symbols or sentences.
2. A book, tome or other set of writings.
3. (colloquial) A brief written message transmitted between mobile phones.

   Synonym: text message

4. (computing) Data which can be interpreted as human-readable text.

   Antonym: binary

   Coordinate term: plain text

5. A verse or passage of Scripture, especially one chosen as the subject of a sermon, or in proof of a doctrine.
6. (by extension) Anything chosen as the subject of an argument, literary composition, etc.

   Synonyms: topic, theme

7. (printing) A style of writing in large characters; also, a kind of type used in printing.

   Synonym: text hand

   German text

Hyponyms

Derived terms

Translations

Verb

text (third-person singular simple present texts, present participle texting, simple past and past participle texted or (colloquial) text)

1. (transitive) To send a text message to; i.e. to transmit text using the Short Message Service (SMS), or a similar service, between communications devices, particularly mobile phones.

   Synonyms: message, (UK) SMS

   Just text me when you get here.

   I'll text the address to you as soon as I find it.

2. (intransitive) To send and receive text messages.

   Have you been texting all afternoon?

3. (dated) To write in large characters, as in text hand.
   • 1607–21, Phillip Massinger, Beaumont and Fletcher, The Tragedy of Thierry and Theodoret, act 2, scene 1:

     I wish / (Next to my part of Heav'n) that she would spend / The last part of her life so here, that all / Indifferent judges might condemn me for / A most malicious slanderer, nay, text it / Upon my forehead

   • 2009, Lain Fenlon, Early Music History: Studies in Medieval and Early Modern Music‎^[1] (Music), Cambridge University Press, →ISBN, page p. 223:

     The basic plan is simple. For the first two phrases the texted line is above the untexted; for the next two, bring us to the midpoint cadence, the texted line is for the most part lower; and the in the second half the texted material starts lower, moves into the upper position and finally occupies the bottom range again.

Translations

Further reading

• Text in the Encyclopædia Britannica (11th edition, 1911)
• “text”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.
• text in Keywords for Today: A 21st Century Vocabulary, edited by The Keywords Project, Colin MacCabe, Holly Yanacek, 2018.
• “text”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.

Catalan text definition

Etymology

Borrowed from Medieval Latin textus (“text”), from Latin textus, perfect passive participle of texō (“weave”), attested from the 14th century.^[1]

Pronunciation

• (Balearic, Central, Valencian) IPA^(key): /ˈtekst/

Noun

text m (plural texts or textos)

1. text

Related terms

• textual

References

Further reading

• “text” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
• “text” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
• “text” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.

Czech text definition

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈtɛkst]

Noun

text m inan

1. text

   text knihy ― the text of the book

   text písně ― lyrics

   text smlouvy ― the text of the contract

Declension

Derived terms

Further reading

• text in Příruční slovník jazyka českého, 1935–1957
• text in Slovník spisovného jazyka českého, 1960–1971, 1989

Northern Kurdish text definition

Etymology

From Persian تخت‎ (taxt).

Noun

text m

1. throne
2. bed
3. wood, tree

Related terms

• textî
• textîn
• textînî

References

• Cabolov, R. L. (2010) Etimologičeskij slovarʹ kurdskovo jazyka [Etymological Dictionary of the Kurdish Language] (in Russian), volume II, Moscow: Russian Academy Press Vostochnaya Literatura, page 389

Romanian text definition

Etymology

Borrowed from French texte, Latin textus.

Noun

text n (plural texte)

1. text

References

• text in DEX online—Dicționare ale limbii române (Dictionaries of the Romanian language)

Swedish text definition

Pronunciation

• Audio

  (file)

Noun

text c

1. text

Declension

Declension of text
	Singular		Plural
	Indefinite	Definite	Indefinite	Definite
Nominative	text	texten	texter	texterna
Genitive	texts	textens	texters	texternas