topic

American  

[top-ik] / ˈtɒp ɪk /

noun

1. a subject of conversation or discussion.

   to provide a topic for discussion.

2. the subject or theme of a discourse or of one of its parts.

   Synonyms:

   subject matter, thesis

3. Rhetoric, Logic. a general field of considerations from which arguments can be drawn.

4. Also called theme.  Linguistics. the part of a sentence that announces the item about which the rest of the sentence communicates information, often signaled by initial position in the sentence or by a grammatical marker.

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topic British  

/ ˈtɒpɪk /

noun

1. a subject or theme of a speech, essay, book, etc

2. a subject of conversation; item of discussion

3. (in rhetoric, logic, etc) a category or class of arguments or ideas which may be drawn on to furnish proofs

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Related Words

See subject.

Etymology

Origin of topic

First recorded in 1560–70; from Latin topica (plural), from Greek (tà) topiká name of work by Aristotle (literally, “(things) pertaining to commonplaces),” equivalent to tóp(os) “commonplace” + -ika, neuter plural of -ikos -ic; topo-

Example Sentences

“We look forward to engaging in the CMA’s process and will continue discussions with website owners and other stakeholders on this topic.”

From The Wall Street Journal

Few sports topics are as reliably ponderous, full of arid data, self-importance and opinions that only make sense to the voters holding them.

From The Wall Street Journal

“Kelly’s behavior is one of the most interesting topics to discuss because it’s still a mystery to this day.”

From Salon

Intrusive thoughts can be extremely distressing and often focus on topics that feel completely at odds with a person's values or identity.

From BBC

On Tuesday, Weiss took questions on a range of topics, including about potential layoffs at the network.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• affair
• argument
• business
• case
• field
• issue
• material
• matter
• point
• problem
• proposition
• question
• subject
• theme