(~s)
Frequency: The word is one of the 3000 most common words in English.
1.
A ~ in a piece of writing, a talk, or a discussion is an important idea or subject that runs through it.
The ~ of the conference is renaissance Europe...
N-COUNT: usu with supp
2.
A ~ in an artist’s work or in a work of literature is an idea in it that the artist or writer develops or repeats.
The novel’s central ~ is the perennial conflict between men and women...
N-COUNT: usu with supp
3.
A ~ is a short simple tune on which a piece of music is based.
...variations on ~s from Mozart’s The Magic Flute.
N-COUNT
4.
Theme music or a ~ song is a piece of music that is played at the beginning and end of a film or of a television or radio programme.
...the ~ from Dr Zhivago...
N-COUNT: usu N n