topic sentence

/ˈtɑpɪk ˈsɛntɪns/

/ˈtɒpɪk ˈsɛntɪns/

Other forms: topic sentences

The group of words that summarizes a paragraph's main idea is a topic sentence. In academic writing, the topic sentence is often the first one you write when you start a new paragraph.

topic sentenceWhen you write an essay for school, you should include a topic sentence near the beginning of each paragraph, summarizing your main point. If your thesis is "Having a dog makes life better," the topic sentence of your first paragraph could be "Dog owners are healthier because they get outside every day." This makes it clear what topic you'll focus on in each paragraph — it's a great way to organize your ideas so a reader can easily understand them!

Definitions of topic sentence

1. noun

   a statement that provides the main idea of a paragraph
   type of:

   sentence

   a string of words satisfying the grammatical rules of a language