melodramatic
Americanadjective
-
of, like, or befitting melodrama.
-
exaggerated and emotional or sentimental; sensational or sensationalized; overdramatic.
noun
Other Word Forms
- melodramatically adverb
- nonmelodramatic adjective
- nonmelodramatically adverb
- unmelodramatic adjective
- unmelodramatically adverb
Etymology
Origin of melodramatic
First recorded in 1810–20; melodrama + (drama)tic
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Opening track I Will Overcome finds her doom-scrolling through her phone on the rainy streets of Paris, set to an orchestral score that recalls Sondheim at his most melodramatic.
From BBC
He sounded so earnest, I couldn’t tell him I’d found the picture depressing and melodramatic.
From Literature
Still, I volunteered to do the deed myself so I could whisper a melodramatic goodbye to Pierre.
From Literature
Besson always manages to get his actors on the same page he is, and both Jones and Bleu match the director’s campy operatic tone in their melodramatic performances.
From Los Angeles Times
Her melodramatic sorrow at her stilted relationship with Alexis is palpable even as she mourns her daughter’s unwillingness to join her on a wine tasting tour in France . . . when Alexis was seven.
From Salon
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
