soap opera
Americannoun
noun
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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.
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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]
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.
A spinoff-sequel to Taylor Sheridan’s saddle-sore soap opera “Yellowstone,” the series has had plenty of advance word, of the no-publicity-is-bad-publicity variety.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 14, 2026
"This is a tech soap opera that all investors will be watching," Wedbush analyst Dan Ives said in a note to investors.
From Barron's • Apr. 27, 2026
Muldoon originated the role of Austin Reed on the daytime soap opera “Days of Our Lives.”
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 20, 2026
If it was a soap opera, he'd have been barred from the pub and written out the script.
From BBC • Feb. 20, 2026
Rabia looks from one of us to the other, as if she’s watching an entertainingly tense moment in a TV soap opera.
From "A Place at the Table" by Saadia Faruqi and Laura Shovan
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.
