melodrama English · revision 929
11 Oct 2026, 02:42 by bogdan “New entry from the dictionary sources (AHD, Barnhart, Etymonline, MW, OED, RHWU, Wiktionary)” current version
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+ ==Pronunciation==
+ * IPA: /ˈmɛləˌdɹɑːmə/^(Wiktionary)
+
+ ==Etymology==
+ It is an alteration of ''melodrame'',^(AHD)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline) [[bor|fr|mélodrame]],^(AHD)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU) from [[grc|μέλος|tr=mélos|t=song]] and French ''drame'' “drama”.^(AHD)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)
+
+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==
+ A stage play, usually romantic and sensational, with songs and orchestral music accompanying the action (1809 in the OED and Barnhart; 1784 in Etymonline).^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)
+
+ ==Semantic evolution==
+ Over the 19th century the musical element ceased to be essential, and the name came to denote a play marked by sensational incidents and violent appeals to the emotions, usually with a happy ending.^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989) By 1814 it was used of real events resembling a melodrama,^(OED 1989) and it now applies also to films and television, and to exaggerated, theatrical behaviour.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU) Fowler described the melodramatist's task as labelling characters good or wicked and providing striking situations.^(Etymonline)
+
+ ==Timeline==
+ * 1782 – ''melo drame''.^(Etymonline)
+ * 1784 – a dramatic composition with music.^(Etymonline)
+ * 1802 – ''melodrame'' (Barnhart); Merriam-Webster's date.^(Barnhart 1995)^(MW Collegiate)
+ * 1809 – ''melodrama''.^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1995)
+ * 1814 – real events resembling a melodrama.^(OED 1989)
+ * 1816 – ''melodramatic''.^(Barnhart 1995)
+
+ ==Modern meaning==
+ ===Noun===
+ # A play, film or other drama marked by exaggerated emotions, [[stereotype|alt=stereotyped]] characters and sensational plot.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)
+ # The dramatic genre made up of such works.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(OED 1989)
+ # Behaviour or events having the exaggerated, theatrical quality of melodrama.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)
+ # ''(historical)'' A romantic stage play with songs and orchestral music accompanying the action.^(RHWU)^(OED 1989)^(Wiktionary)
+
+ ==Word family==
+ * [[melodramatist]]
+ * [[melodramatic]]
+ * [[melodramatics]]
+ * [[melodramatize]]
+
+ ==Related words==
+ * [[melody]]
+ * [[drama]]
+ * [[soap opera]]
+
+ ==References==
+ {{reflist}}