What does "theme" mean?

1. (main idea) the main subject or idea in a piece of writing, a movie, or a talk. 2. (recurring style) a style or decoration that is used throughout a place or an event. 3. (music) a short piece of music that is played at the start of a movie or TV show. 4. (linguistics) the part of a sentence that contains the information you are already talking about. 5. (to design with a style) to design something so that it follows a specific style or idea.

theme

n. · v.

US //ˈθim// UK //θˈiːm// theme

1 main idea (n.)
B1 Intermediate Academic

the main subject or idea in a piece of writing, a movie, or a talk.

the central topic or underlying message within a literary, artistic, or academic work.

Example

The main theme of the novel is the importance of family.

Example

The professor argued that the theme of social isolation is central to understanding the protagonist's erratic behaviour throughout the second act.
2 recurring style (n.)
B1 Intermediate

a style or decoration that is used throughout a place or an event.

a unifying style or motif used to create a consistent atmosphere in a physical space or event.

Example

The birthday party had a tropical theme with palm trees and sand.

Example

The hotel's interior design follows a minimalist theme, using neutral colours and natural wood to create a sense of calm.

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3 music (n.)
B1 Intermediate Music

a short piece of music that is played at the start of a movie or TV show.

a recognisable melody or musical sequence associated with a specific character, programme, or film.

Example

I always hum the theme song of my favourite cartoon.

Example

The composer introduced a haunting violin theme that recurred whenever the villain appeared on screen.
- melody
- jingle
4 linguistics (n.)
C2 Proficiency Academic Technical Science

the part of a sentence that contains the information you are already talking about.

the part of a clause that provides the point of departure for the message; often contrasted with the 'rheme'.

Example

In the sentence 'As for the money, I lost it', the theme is 'the money'.

Example

Functional grammar distinguishes between the theme, which anchors the clause in context, and the rheme, which provides new information.
- topic
- rheme
5 to design with a style (v.)
B2 Upper Intermediate Computing

to design something so that it follows a specific style or idea.

to apply a specific aesthetic or conceptual design to a physical space or digital interface.

Example

They decided to theme the restaurant like an old library.

Example

Users can theme their operating system by downloading custom icon packs and colour schemes from the community forum.
- style
- customise

Origin

From Middle English teme, from Old French teme, tesme (French thème), from Latin thema, from Ancient Greek θέμα (théma), from τίθημι (títhēmi, “to put, place”), reduplicative from Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁- (“to put, place, do”) (whence also English do). Doublet of thema.