theme

noun

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\ ˈthēm

Definition of theme

1a : a subject or topic of discourse or of artistic representation guilt and punishment is the theme of the story

b : a specific and distinctive quality, characteristic, or concern the campaign has lacked a theme

2 : a melodic subject of a musical composition or movement

3 : a written exercise : composition a research theme

4 : stem sense 4

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Examples of theme in a Sentence

If one theme unites his scholarship it is that the Old South cannot be viewed as a monolith. — Eric Foner, New York Times Book Review, 8 Apr. 2007 One reiterated theme of his book is that the electoral process can be the most dangerous of delusions, tending to confer a spurious legitimacy on those most willing to corrupt it. — Hilary Mantel, New York Review, 21 Sept. 2006 The Eve of biblical legend was a temptress, thus initiating a lamentable theme in the history of sexism. — Stephen Jay Gould, Discover, July 1992 The quest for power is the underlying theme of the film. A constant theme in his novels is religion. The playwright skillfully brings together various themes. The album focuses on themes of love and loss. Adventures are popular themes in children's books. The growing deficit was a dominant theme in the election. The party had a Hawaiian luau theme. They played the theme from the movie “Rocky.”

Recent Examples on the Web Then Sullivan guides the class through a meditative session, sometimes with different themes, focusing on sounds, breathing, and body scans, all techniques used to focus people on being present. — Ryan Nickerson, Houston Chronicle, "Weekly mindfulness classes held at Russ Pitman Park in Bellaire," 10 Feb. 2020 All have signs nearby with a common theme: outsiders cannot pass. — Charlie Campbell, Time, "The Coronavirus Outbreak Could Derail Xi Jinping’s Dreams of a Chinese Century," 6 Feb. 2020 In 2018, Macy’s also acquired Story, a New York single-store concept founded by Shechtman that emptied out every couple of months and reopened with an entirely new theme of merchandise. — Maria Halkias, Dallas News, "Macy’s is partly betting its future on a new shop opening first in Southlake Town Square," 4 Feb. 2020 Keeping with the dog theme, the levels go by size: Rottie, Lab, Frenchy and Pom. — Tirion Morris, azcentral, "Here are 5 metro Phoenix wine clubs worth trying in 2020," 3 Feb. 2020 In keeping with the Roaring 20s theme, adults can buy tickets to drink period cocktails at the Cool Brew Speakeasy within the Cedarburg Cultural Center from 7 to 9 p.m. Saturday. — Jeff Rumage, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Cedarburg's Winter Festival takes on Roaring 20's theme," 3 Feb. 2020 This new month is for lovers, and viewing options on Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime, HBO Now and Acorn TV are in line with that theme. — Michelle Krupa, CNN, "Start your Monday smart: Super Bowl, Iowa, State of the Union, Israel, Solar Orbiter," 2 Feb. 2020 His rhymes, with the high school themes and delivered with an authority that belied his lack of experience, stood him in good stead. — Chuck Yarborough, cleveland, "24th annual Tri-C High School Rock Off gets off to rousing start with stiff competition," 2 Feb. 2020 Sticking with the 49ers’ theme, Cameron DaSilva is also all about San Francisco, predicting a super-tight game with the 49ers beating the Chiefs by just one point, 28-27. — Brian Rudd, USA TODAY Sportsbook Wire, "2020 Super Bowl picks, scores and MVP predictions," 2 Feb. 2020

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'theme.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.