Plato's Sophist 259E4-6

There are at least seven different well-known interpretations of Sophist 259E4-6. In this paper Ishow them to be either misleading, in conflict with the context, or at odds with Plato’s project inthe dialogue. I argue that 259E4-6 tells us that in view of the fact that statements consist in theweaving of different linguistic terms that stand for different extra-linguistic items, if there is to bestatements, then reality must consist in a plurality of items some of which mix with some andsome of which do not mix with some according to certain ontological rules. My argument for thisconstrual of Sophist 259E4-6 involves an analysis of the passage as well as an assessment of howthat text fits into its context.