tragicomedy

American  

[traj-i-kom-i-dee] / ˌtrædʒ ɪˈkɒm ɪ di /

noun

plural

tragicomedies

1. a dramatic or other literary composition combining elements of both tragedy and comedy.

2. an incident, or series of incidents, of mixed tragic and comic character.

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tragicomedy British  

/ ˌtrædʒɪˈkɒmɪdɪ /

noun

1. 1. a drama in which aspects of both tragedy and comedy are found

   2. the dramatic genre of works of this kind

2. an event or incident having both comic and tragic aspects

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Other Word Forms

• tragicomic
  adjective
• tragicomical
  adjective
• tragicomically
  adverb

Etymology

Origin of tragicomedy

1570–80; < Late Latin tragicōmoedia, syncopated variant of Latin tragicocōmoedia. See tragic, -o-, comedy

Explanation

A play that blends elements of both tragedy and comedy is known as a tragicomedy. The remarkable thing about a tragicomedy is that it can make you laugh and cry. A tragicomedy might be a serious drama interspersed with funny moments that periodically lighten the mood, or a drama that has a happy ending. The Roman playwright Plautus is usually credited with coining the term in his play Amphitryon, when the character Mercury says, of a play-within-a-play featuring both gods and servants, "I will make it a mixture: let it be a tragicomedy."

Example Sentences

Tragicomedy, also a huge “Banshees” attribute, was in play on both prop and weather fronts.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 14, 2023

Tragicomedy as a species had up to this time hardly been recognized in the English drama, although there are sporadic instances of the use of the term and although romantic comedy usually offered tragic elements.

From Tragedy by Thorndike, Ashley H.

Tragicomedy had been distinguished from tragedy not by the presence of comedy but by the fact that its leading persons were brought near to death yet saved for a happy ending.

From Tragedy by Thorndike, Ashley H.