Comparing "huati", "timu", and "zhuti"

话题, 题目, and 主题 are similar because all are nouns that mean “topic”. 题目 and 主题 are used in formal situations, whereas 话题 is used in informal situations. Each of these three words has distinct uses within specific context. 话题 means a topic of conversation, what you are talking about. 题目 means the title, i.e. the title of a thesis, or in an entirely different context a specific question on a test. 主题 is the subject of a literary or artistic work (poem, painting, etc.).

	创造 (chuàngzào)	创作 (chuàngzuò)	发明 (fāmíng)
Meaning	to create, to produce (abstract or concrete things)	to create, to produce (artistic works)	to invent
Part of Speech	verb	verb	verb, noun
Formality	formal	formal	formal