soap opera
Americannoun
-
soap operas
plural
noun
-
A radio or television serial with stock characters in domestic dramas that are noted for being sentimental and melodramatic. For example, She just watches soap operas all day long . This term originated in the mid-1930s and was so called because the sponsors of the earliest such radio shows were often soap manufacturers.
-
Real-life situation resembling one that might occur in a soap opera, as in She just goes on and on about her various medical and family problems, one long soap opera . [1940s]
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of soap opera
An Americanism dating back to 1935–40; so called because soap manufacturers were among the original sponsors of such programs
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.
Bush is also seen on camera telling “Days of Our Lives” soap opera actress Arianne Zucker to embrace Trump just after the exchange.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 23, 2026
Tune into a smartphone soap opera: Are we entering a new phase of television?
From Slate ● Sep. 16, 2026
For best drama actress, Rosen says it will be a race between "Pluribus" star Rhea Seehorn and Keri Russell for political soap opera "The Diplomat."
From Barron's ● Sep. 12, 2026
I was cast as an understudy on the soap opera “One Life to Live.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 8, 2026
It has suspense, tragedy, startling developments—a soap opera growing out of the ground.
From "Seedfolks" by Paul Fleischman
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.
