Thesis Meaning

/ˈθiːsɪs/
B1

Definition, CEFR level B1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.

Listen pronunciation

nounSenses relating to logic, rhetoric, etc.

nounSenses relating to logic, rhetoric, etc., A proposition or statement supported by arguments.

I'll need at least three days to translate that thesis.
This data is for my thesis.
Students must submit a thesis on an agreed subject within four years.
CEFR Practice Quiz
For her final degree, she wrote a long research ____ that took two years to complete.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The student spent several months writing her final ____ about the impact of climate change on local wildlife today.

From Late Middle English thesis (“lowering of the voice”) and also borrowed directly from its etymon Latin thesis (“proposition, thesis; lowering of the voice”), from Ancient Greek θέσῐς (thésĭs, “arrangement, placement, setting; conclusion, position, thesis; lowering of the voice”), from τῐ́θημῐ (tĭ́thēmĭ, “to place, put, set; to put down in writing; to consider as, regard”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁- (“to do; to place, put”)) + -σῐς (-sĭs, suffix forming abstract nouns or nouns of action, process, or result). The English word is a doublet of deed. Sense 1.1 (“proposition or statement supported by arguments”) is adopted from antithesis. Sense 1.4 (“initial stage of reasoning”) was first used by the German philosopher Johann Gottlieb Fichte (1762–1814), and later applied to the dialectical method of his countryman, the philosopher Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (1770–1831). The plural form theses is borrowed from Latin thesēs, from Ancient Greek θέσεις (théseis).

"I submit these nine theses to Wikipedia’s community and to the world. I do this, as Martin Luther said when he posted his famous 95 theses, “Out of love for the truth and the desire to elucidate it.” […] I am confident that every thesis stands on solid ground." — 2025 September 30, Larry Sanger, “Nine Theses on Wikipedia”, in larrysanger.org:
"I told them of the grave, becoming, and ſublime deportment they ſhould aſſume upon this myſtical occaſion, and read them two homilies and a theſis of my own compoſing, in order to prepare them." — 1766, [Oliver Goldsmith], “The Conclusion”, in The Vicar of Wakefield: […], volume II, Salisbury, Wiltshire: […] B. Collins, for F[rancis] Newbery, […], →OCLC, pages 218–219:

Explore More B1 Vocabulary Words

CEFR Practice Quiz
For her final degree, she wrote a long research ____ that took two years to complete.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The student spent several months writing her final ____ about the impact of climate change on local wildlife today.

Expand Your Vocabulary with LexUp

Master English words using smart flashcards, play exciting word rounds, and compete with other learners worldwide.

Browse CEFR Words Alphabetically