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
5
a
: the words of something (such 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
text-editing software
6
: a type suitable for printing running text
7
: textbook
8
a
: something (such 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
Michiko Kakutani9
: frame of reference sense 2
updated to fit the women's lib text for consciousness raising—Judith Crist
Judith Crist10
: text message
sent a text with the details
texted
ˈtek-stəd 
nonstandard ˈtekst
; texting
: to send a text message from one cell phone to another
: to communicate by text messaging
texter
noun
Synonyms
Examples of text in a Sentence
Noun
A good critic will refer back to the text often.
You can find the full text of his speech on his website.
the text of the Constitution
The book is mostly photographs—it has very little text.
At this point the website is only text. Graphics will be added later.
Students will read and discuss various literary texts.
Verb
I texted her a little while ago.
I texted a message to her.
She just texted me back.
Recent Examples on the Web
Char Adams, NBC News, 7 Nov. 2024
The tool can modify sentences or longer sections of text to shorten or lengthen the word count, change the tone, or format it in a different way.
—Kate Irwin, PCMAG, 7 Nov. 2024
Andy Swift, TVLine, 4 Nov. 2024
Ross said Truong even texts him on weekends after games, sharing videos of his performance in drills and asking for advice on how to improve.
—Benjamin Royer, Los Angeles Times, 3 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for text 
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Noun
Although college students seem to be the most targeted with the texts, Black people of varying ages have reported receiving the messages.
—Char Adams, NBC News, 7 Nov. 2024
The tool can modify sentences or longer sections of text to shorten or lengthen the word count, change the tone, or format it in a different way.
—Kate Irwin, PCMAG, 7 Nov. 2024
Verb
Nancy accidentally texts a naked picture of herself to the entire station on tonight’s episode of 9-1-1: Lone Star (Fox, 8/7c), a storyline that’s initially played for laughs… until things take a very serious turn.
—Andy Swift, TVLine, 4 Nov. 2024
Ross said Truong even texts him on weekends after games, sharing videos of his performance in drills and asking for advice on how to improve.
—Benjamin Royer, Los Angeles Times, 3 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for text
Dictionary Entries Near text
Cite this Entry
“Text.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/text. Accessed 22 Nov. 2024.
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