themes

Noun

theme (plural themes)

1. A subject, now especially of a talk or an artistic piece; a topic.
   • "Had not you once a beautiful daughter, named Mary?" said the stranger.
     "It is a heartrending question, man," said Andrew; "but certes, I had once a beloved daughter named Mary."
     "What became of her?" asked the stranger.
     Andrew shook his head, turned round, and began to move away; it was a theme...1828, James Hogg, Mary Burnet
2. A concept with multiple instantiations.
   • variations on the theme of entrepreneurial resourcefulness
3. Any of various colors, or color palettes, in which a design is offered; (graphical user interface) any of various skins for an app, affecting the visuals and perhaps other elements such as sound effects.
   • switch to a dark theme to conserve battery power

   Synonyms:

   colorway

4. (dated) An essay written for school.
   • Father Dolan came in today and pandied me because I was not writing my theme.1917, James Joyce, A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man
5. The main melody of a piece of music, especially one that is the source of variations.
6. A song, or a snippet of a song, that identifies a film, a TV program, a character, etc. by playing at the appropriate time.

See all 14 meanings of theme