subplot
/ˈsʌb.plɒt/
Etymology
From sub- + plot.
subplot means A plot within a story, subsidiary to the main plot. Lexicurio rates it Rare gem — a strength score of 83 out of 100.
noun
- A plot within a story, subsidiary to the main plot.“1978, R.B. Lee & R. Misiorowski, Script Models: A Handbook for the Media Writer,
Subplot, a story line enclosed within the principal story to provide relief from the main plot's tension, add character dimension, etc.”
- A subdivision of a plot of land, especially one used for an agricultural experiment.“[...] on sixteen 8/10-acre plots (12.8 acres) well distributed over the area. [...] A 1/160-acre subplot was established in a randomly chosen corner of each [...]”
verb
- To provide (a story) with a subplot.“In the pictures of places, too, an author uses economy; and for his plot, complicated and subplotted as it may seem, he cannot count on having vast stretches of eternity in which to elaborate forever.”