subject matter

noun

: matter presented for consideration in discussion, thought, or study

Examples of subject matter in a Sentence

I found the film's subject matter to be quite disturbing.

She disapproves of the artist's choice of subject matter.

Recent Examples on the Web

Conley, an appointee of former President Barack Obama, dismissed the case without prejudice for lack of subject matter jurisdiction and granted the defendants’ sanctions motions. — Kaelan Deese, The Washington Examiner, 4 Sep. 2026

The Cold War playbook The senior NASA official, however, argued that scholarships may not be sufficient, and a dedicated institution would showcase how vital subject matter expertise has become. — Jackie Wattles, CNN Money, 4 Sep. 2026

The painting’s joyful casualness belies its subject matter, clues to which can be found in the coyote on one of the men’s shirts and in the work’s title, Uncle’s Crossing (2022). — Maximilíano Durón, ARTnews.com, 4 Sep. 2026

That knowledge lives in decades of institutional practice, scattered across subject matter experts and systems that were never designed to talk to each other. — Rohit Kapoor, Forbes.com, 4 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1657, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for subject matter

• antimatter
• atter
• batter
• blatter
• catarrh
• chatter
• clatter
• fatter
• flatter
• hatter
• latter
• natter

Kids Definition

subject matter

noun

: matter presented for consideration in discussion, thought, or study

the poem's subject matter