THEME

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does theme mean? 

• THEME (noun)
  The noun THEME has 5 senses:

1. the subject matter of a conversation or discussion

2. a unifying idea that is a recurrent element in literary or artistic work

3. (music) melodic subject of a musical composition

4. an essay (especially one written as an assignment)

5. (linguistics) the form of a word after all affixes are removed

  Familiarity information: THEME used as a noun is common.

• THEME (verb)
  The verb THEME has 1 sense:

1. provide with a particular theme or motive

  Familiarity information: THEME used as a verb is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• THEME (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

The subject matter of a conversation or discussion

Classified under:

Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents

Synonyms:

subject; theme; topic

Context example:

his letters were always on the theme of love

Hypernyms ("theme" is a kind of...):

content; message; subject matter; substance (what a communication that is about something is about)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "theme"):

bone of contention (the subject of a dispute)

precedent (a subject mentioned earlier (preceding in time))

head; question (the subject matter at issue)

keynote (the principal theme in a speech or literary work)

Derivation:

thematic (relating to or constituting a topic of discourse)

Sense 2

Meaning:

A unifying idea that is a recurrent element in literary or artistic work

Classified under:

Nouns denoting cognitive processes and contents

Synonyms:

motif; theme

Context example:

it was the usual 'boy gets girl' theme

Hypernyms ("theme" is a kind of...):

idea; thought (the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "theme"):

topos (a traditional theme or motif or literary convention)

Derivation:

thematic (relating to or constituting a topic of discourse)

Sense 3

Meaning:

(music) melodic subject of a musical composition

Classified under:

Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents

Synonyms:

idea; melodic theme; musical theme; theme

Context example:

the accompanist picked up the idea and elaborated it

Hypernyms ("theme" is a kind of...):

air; line; melodic line; melodic phrase; melody; strain; tune (a succession of notes forming a distinctive sequence)

Domain category:

music (an artistic form of auditory communication incorporating instrumental or vocal tones in a structured and continuous manner)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "theme"):

motif; motive (a theme that is repeated or elaborated in a piece of music)

statement ((music) the presentation of a musical theme)

variation (a repetition of a musical theme in which it is modified or embellished)

Derivation:

thematic (of or relating to a melodic subject)

Sense 4

Meaning:

An essay (especially one written as an assignment)

Classified under:

Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents

Synonyms:

composition; paper; report; theme

Context example:

he got an A on his composition

Hypernyms ("theme" is a kind of...):

essay (an analytic or interpretive literary composition)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "theme"):

term paper (a composition intended to indicate a student's progress during a school term)

Sense 5

Meaning:

(linguistics) the form of a word after all affixes are removed

Classified under:

Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents

Synonyms:

base; radical; root; root word; stem; theme

Context example:

thematic vowels are part of the stem

Hypernyms ("theme" is a kind of...):

descriptor; form; signifier; word form (the phonological or orthographic sound or appearance of a word that can be used to describe or identify something)

Domain category:

linguistics (the scientific study of language)

• THEME (verb)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Provide with a particular theme or motive

Classified under:

Verbs of buying, selling, owning

Context example:

the restaurant often themes its menus

Hypernyms (to "theme" is one way to...):

furnish; provide; render; supply (give something useful or necessary to)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

 Context examples 

I was deeply sorry to have touched on such a painful theme, but that was useless now.

(David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens)

This eclipse will also underscore the theme of health for you.

(AstrologyZone.com, by Susan Miller)

Fanny's beauty of face and figure, Fanny's graces of manner and goodness of heart, were the exhaustless theme.

(Mansfield Park, by Jane Austen)

ANK repeats have been identified in over 1700 functionally diverse proteins, primarily from eukaryotes; no common theme among the protein targets has been identified.

(Ankyrin Repeat, NCI Thesaurus)

No; but I can scarcely see what Mr. Rochester has to do with the theme you had introduced.

(Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Brontë)

The foolhardiness or ignorance of her officers was a prolific theme for comment whilst she remained in sight, and efforts were made to signal her to reduce sail in face of her danger.

(Dracula, by Bram Stoker)

His manly beauty and more than common gracefulness were instantly the theme of general admiration, and the laugh which his gallantry raised against Marianne received particular spirit from his exterior attractions.

(Sense and Sensibility, by Jane Austen)

A subtype of delusional disorder characterized by the central delusional theme that the individual's spouse or lover is unfaithful.

(Jealous Type Delusional Disorder, NCI Thesaurus)

Emphasis on multi-site, cooperative research by multi- disciplinary teams of investigators wishing to collaborate within the common theme of the genetic epidemiology of cancer.

(Interdisciplinary Studies in the Genetic Epidemiology of Cancer, NCI Thesaurus)

A subtype of delusional disorder characterized by the central delusional theme that another person (usually one of higher status) is in love with the individual.

(Erotomanic Type Delusional Disorder, NCI Thesaurus)