Definition of "thesis" []

• A proposition that is maintained by argument. (noun)
• A dissertation advancing an original point of view as a result of research, especially as a requirement for an academic degree. (noun)
• A hypothetical proposition, especially one put forth without proof. (noun)
• The first stage of the Hegelian dialectic process. (noun)
• The long or accented part of a metrical foot, especially in quantitative verse. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "His main thesis is that the style and rhetoric used by the Fathers at the Second Vatican Council are, in the end, the message."
• "In the talk itself, Herzlinger's main thesis is that markets work, and they could work in health care."
• "But again, my main thesis is that we shouldn't have to choose whether or not to send our kids to a school 30 minutes away from home just because they have recess or art or new computers."