thème
/tɛm/masculine
The French word for theme is thème.
The noun thème refers to the subject of a talk or an artistic piece. You can use the phrase développer un thème to mean 'to develop a theme'. Note that when referring to a 'theme park', French uses the plural form parc à thèmes.
Meaning: subject of a talk or an artistic piece (noun)
Which one should you use?
While thème is a general term, you may use le sujet to refer to a subject or theme, particularly in academic or literary contexts. If you want to emphasize the problematic or challenging aspects of a theme, use the formal term la problématique.
How does it change in a sentence?
The noun thème is masculine and is preceded by the masculine definite article le to form le thème.
How do you pronounce it?
/tɛm/
Did you know?
- In French language classrooms, thème refers to a specific translation exercise where a student translates a text from their native language into the target language.
- The opposite of the classroom exercise thème is version, which refers to translating a text from a foreign language back into French.
- The French word thème is a learned borrowing from the Latin thema, which originally came from the Ancient Greek word θέμα, meaning 'something placed'.
Examples in context
- Quel est le thème du roman ?What's the theme of the novel?This sentence is useful for asking about the theme of a novel using thème.Tatoeba #9012831 by lbdx, translation #3071388 by sharptoothed
- Quel est le thème principal ?What is the main theme?This sentence is useful for asking about a main theme using thème.Tatoeba #8736994 by Julien_PDC, translation #11614028 by tieguy
- Paris n’est pas un parc à thèmes.Paris is not a theme park.This sentence is useful for mentioning a theme park using the plural form thèmes.Tatoeba #12865206 by Orange, translation #12865192 by Orange
- J'étudie le thème de la nature dans cette œuvre.I am studying the theme of nature in this work.
- Le sujet principal de ce roman est l'amour.The main theme of this novel is love.
- Le thème principal de ce film est la liberté.The main theme of this film is freedom.
- Le sujet central de cette exposition est l'art moderne.The central theme of this exhibition is modern art.
- Dans ce livre, l'auteur explore le thème de la solitude à travers le personnage principal.In this book, the author explores the theme of loneliness through the main character.
- Le thème principal du film est traité de manière subtile et poignante.The main theme of the film is handled in a subtle and poignant manner.
- 7 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Nathan and Chloé are discussing a school project.
- NathanAs-tu choisi un thème pour ton exposé ?Have you chosen a theme for your presentation?
- ChloéOui, le thème sera l'histoire de l'art.Yes, the theme will be art history.
- NathanC'est un thème très intéressant, Chloé.That is a very interesting theme, Chloé.
- ChloéMerci, Nathan, je vais faire des recherches.Thanks, Nathan, I'm going to do some research.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “theme” translations and entries thème, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries thème, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
