Word of the Day: Text

text / tekst   noun  

1. the words in a piece of printed or written material

Apply yourself wholly to the text; apply the text wholly to yourself. Johann Albrecht Bengel, 1687-1752  

2. the original words of an author

A key text for me is James Baldwin’s essays. Glenn Ligon, 1960-  

3. a verse from religious scripture

Teaching the biblical text means that we take our hearers on a journey to another world […] Brandon Kelley, ?-  

4. in printing, type

As text gets bigger, the space between the letters expands […] thinkingwithtype.com/text/  

5. in digital communication, a message sent from a phone

There’s no text that can replace a loving touch when someone we love is hurting. Ashton Kutcher, 1978-  

6. words set to music

Text first, rhythm second, melody third. Claudio Monteverdi, 1567-1643   verb  

1. to send a typed message from a phone

Texting is very loose in its structure. No one thinks about capital letters or punctuation when one texts, but then again, do you think about those things when you talk? John H. McWhorter, 1965-