theme song

noun

plural theme songs

1

: a song or melody strongly associated with someone or something

a famous performer's theme song

the theme song of a political campaign

often : an identifying melody or song typically played at the beginning of a movie, television show, etc., and sometimes recurring during its course

Some of these shows were truly unforgettable, with catchy theme songs that are instantly recognizable decades later.

—Grant Butler

2

: a statement, expression, or opinion repeatedly heard from someone

But literary history is also entangled with criticism. Inevitably so; let me revert unblushingly to my theme song: in order to appreciate a masterpiece, we must be acquainted with its language …

—Albert Guerard

Examples of theme song in a Sentence

He was playing the theme song from “The Godfather.”

Recent Examples on the Web

There was also a theme song when E-na is starting to do her profiling, making all the different inferences. —Patrick Brzeski, HollywoodReporter, 19 June 2025

Green Day even wrote and recorded a special theme song for the opening credits. —ArsTechnica, 15 June 2025

The track is being featured as the theme song for the new Fuji TV news program Sun! —Billboard Japan, Billboard, 12 June 2025

The report states that WWE is working with a mainstream artist to create a new theme song for Rollins and his group. —Andrew Ravens‎, MSNBC Newsweek, 12 June 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1908, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for theme song

• evensong
• livelong
• overlong
• vietcong
• agung
• along
• belong
• birdsong
• furlong
• headlong
• headstrong
• lifelong