thema

noun

"thema" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“thema” is uncommon English (frequency #93,232 among 3,151 “T” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#93,232
frequency rank, English
3,151
“T” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A subject or theme.

Corpus desk

Index EN-thema · thema · English

thema · rank #93,232 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #93,232
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,151
  • PHOTO-FINISH tercentenary

Nearest frequency peer: tercentenary (-3 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Long-tail ranks near “thema”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “thema” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for thema
PropertyValue
Headwordthema
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
Letters5
Frequency rank#93,232
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “thema” in English

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).themafalls in this rarity band:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Rare peers in the same band: “tercentenary” (#93,229), “Tennent” (#93,228), “thermodynamically” (#93,236). Among 3,151 “T” headwords, “thema” is #93,232. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

thema is uncommon English at frequency #93,232 among 3,151 “T” headwords, classed as anoun. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "A subject or theme.".

thema has no tracked misspelling variants, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: Learned borrowing from Ancient Greek θέμᾰ (thémă). Doublet of theme. The correct English form is thema, spelled T-H-E-M-A.

Definition

  1. 1
    A subject or theme.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how thema appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. Eco has his own image for this method-spiral repetition: every new exploration elevates the solutions to a higher level by expanding the thema's cognitive context.
  2. With regard to its division—which is the second main section [of this treatise]—one must diligently examine the meaning of the words that appear in the thema.

Etymology

Learned borrowing from Ancient Greek θέμᾰ (thémă). Doublet of theme.

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "thema"?
"thema" is spelled T-H-E-M-A.
What does "thema" mean?
As a noun, "thema" means: A subject or theme.
What is the origin of the word "thema"?
Learned borrowing from Ancient Greek θέμᾰ (thémă). Doublet of theme. See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "thema", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 5 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list