buffa

American  

[boo-fuh, boof-fah] / ˈbu fə, ˈbuf fɑ /

noun

plural

buffe

1. a woman who sings comic roles in opera.

2. opera buffa.

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Etymology

Origin of buffa

< Italian; feminine of buffo

Example Sentences

This obscure and hilariously outrageous takeoff on the genre of Italian opera buffa, written in 1846, turned out to be the hit of the weekend.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 7, 2024

And the fierce attachment to the female point of view has the effect of turning the male characters’ rage and violence into a tragicomic opera buffa, a stylized performance of endangered pride.

From New York Times • Mar. 26, 2020

It has more in common with Mozart’s opera buffa than with “Days of Our Lives.”

From Washington Post • Jul. 16, 2015

Berlusconi turned it into opera buffa, was in office longer than any other Italian Prime Minister, and ended up in court.

From The New Yorker • Jun. 22, 2015

Oh! but she sings admirably; has a very fine, strong voice; is an excellent buffa, and an astonishing tragedian.

From Letters of Horace Walpole — Volume II by Walpole, Horace