1. A hand written page that has been erased and written over many times: All history has been a palimpsest, scraped clean and re-inscribed as often as was necessary.
2. A manuscript written over a partly erased older manuscript in such a way that the old words can still be read under the new ones.
3. A manuscript, typically of papyrus or parchment, that has been written on more than once, with the earlier writing incompletely erased and often legible.
4. Writing material; such as, a parchment or tablet which is used one or more times after earlier writing has been diminished.
5. Something having diverse layers or aspects apparently beneath the surface.