opera
1 Americannoun
noun
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an extended dramatic composition, in which all parts are sung to instrumental accompaniment, that usually includes arias, choruses, and recitatives, and that sometimes includes ballet.
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the form or branch of musical and dramatic art represented by such compositions.
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the score or the words of such a composition.
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a performance of one.
to go to the opera.
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(sometimes initial capital letter) an opera house or resident company.
the Paris Opera.
noun
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an extended dramatic work in which music constitutes a dominating feature, either consisting of separate recitatives, arias, and choruses, or having a continuous musical structure
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the branch of music or drama represented by such works
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the score, libretto, etc, of an opera
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a theatre where opera is performed
noun
Etymology
Origin of opera
1635–45; < Italian: work, opera < Latin, plural of opus service, work, a work, opus
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.
The worlds of the two major soap operas will collide in "Corriedale", a one-off episode where Weatherfield locals come face-to-face with their Yorkshire equivalents when they are involved in a fatal collision on the M62.
From BBC
The challenges of those two roles are one reason that the piece is less commonly performed than other bel canto operas.
In these awful, uncertain times, it is heartening that “Star Trek,” that most good-hearted, proudly progressive of space operas, continues to create new missions for fresh multiplanetary crews of explorers.
From Los Angeles Times
The series, which is recorded in Birmingham, is the world's longest-running radio soap opera.
From BBC
The PBS series “Great Performances” fulfills an early, generally unkept, promise of the medium to bring the arts into every home, with opera, ballet and theater.
From Los Angeles Times
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.
