Matter
Matter noun - A major object of interest or concern (as in a discussion or artistic composition).
Usage example: that is not relevant to the matter under discussion
Subject is a synonym for matter in concern topic. In some cases you can use "Subject" instead a noun "Matter", when it comes to topics like situation, meaning, statement, content. popular alternative
Subject
Subject noun - A major object of interest or concern (as in a discussion or artistic composition).
Usage example: the subject of our discussion switched from who would be the next president to who was the greatest president in the nation's history
Matter is a synonym for subject in substance topic. You can use "Matter" instead a noun "Subject", if it concerns topics such as meaning, statement. popular alternative
Mutual synonyms
How words are described
| sensitive | sensitive matter | sensitive subject |
| good | good matter | good subject |
| lyrical | lyrical matter | lyrical subject |
| particular | particular matter | particular subject |
| Other adjectives: similar, related, short, complex, current, dead, difficult, actual, entire, real, complicated, serious, touchy, dark, main, interesting, important, private, new, different, controversial. | ||
Common collocations
Both words in one sentence
- This can get quite confusing, as no matter what your dictionary tells you, scientists have been waffling on the subject of dinosaurs for as long as there has been a name for them.
- It doesn't matter what the subject is, they can rattle off a couple of facts on the subject.
Source: Encyclopaedic Knowledge - Whether this implies a greater respect for the subject's privacy or a lack of journalistic independence is a matter of some debate.
Source: Media Scrum
Cite this Source
Subject and Matter. (2016). Retrieved 2026, July 21, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/matter/subject
Matter & Subject. N.p., 2016. Web. 21 Jul. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/matter/subject>.
Subject or Matter. 2016. Accessed July 21, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/matter/subject.
Google Ngram Viewer shows how "matter" and "subject" have occurred on timeline