topic

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition

1. n. The subject of a speech, essay, thesis, or discourse.
2. n. A subject of discussion or conversation.
3. n. A subdivision of a theme, thesis, or outline. See Synonyms at subject.
4. n. Linguistics A word or phrase in a sentence, usually providing information from previous discourse or shared knowledge, that the rest of the sentence elaborates or comments on. Also called theme.

Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia

1. n. plural In geometry, topology. See topics, 2.
2. Local: same as topical.
3. n. In logic and rhetoric, a common place (which see, under common); a class of considerations from which probable arguments can be drawn. According to the opinion of some writers, the statements of Aristotle are only consistent with making a topic, or common place, a maxim of reasoning. The traditional definition coming through Cicero is “the seat of an argument.” This is not very explicit, and the word has not commonly been used with a very rigid accuracy in logic or rhetoric. The chief topics concern the arguments from notation, conjugates, definition, genus, species, whole, part, cause, effect, snbject, adjunct disparates, contraries, relates, privatives, contradictories, greater, less, equals, similars, dissimilars, and testimony; but different logicians enumerate the topics differently.
4. n. The subject of a discourse, argument, or literary composition, or the subject of any distinct part of a discourse, etc.; any matter treated of: now the usual meaning of the word.
5. n. In medicine, a remedy locally applied.
6. n. Synonyms Theme, Point, etc. See subject.

Wiktionary

1. adj. topical
2. n. Subject; theme; a category or general area of interest.
3. n. Internet discussion thread

GNU Webster's 1913

1. n. One of the various general forms of argument employed in probable as distinguished from demonstrative reasoning, -- denominated by Aristotle to`poi (literally, places), as being the places or sources from which arguments may be derived, or to which they may be referred; also, a prepared form of argument, applicable to a great variety of cases, with a supply of which the ancient rhetoricians and orators provided themselves; a commonplace of argument or oratory.
2. n. A treatise on forms of argument; a system or scheme of forms or commonplaces of argument or oratory.
3. n. obsolete An argument or reason.
4. n. The subject of any distinct portion of a discourse, or argument, or literary composition; also, the general or main subject of the whole; a matter treated of; a subject, as of conversation or of thought; a matter; a point; a head.
5. n. (Med.), obsolescent An external local application or remedy, as a plaster, a blister, etc.
6. adj. Topical.

WordNet 3.0

1. n. the subject matter of a conversation or discussion
2. n. some situation or event that is thought about