Any English major can tell you that a text can be subtle and hard to understand. Latin textus meant literally “woven thing” but could metaphorically be used to refer to the “style or texture of a work” and eventually the “written work” itself. The Latin subtilis meant “finely woven” from sub- “under” + tela “web”. Both text and subtle can thus be traced back to the Proto-Indo-European root *teks- meaning “to weave”.

Any English major can tell you that a text can be subtle and hard to understand. Latin textus meant literally “woven thing” but could metaphorically be used to refer to the “style or texture of a work” and eventually the “written work” itself. The Latin subtilis meant “finely woven” from sub- “under” + tela “web”. Both text and subtle can thus be traced back to the Proto-Indo-European root *teks- meaning “to weave”.