soap opera

soap opera

noun

Definition of SOAP OPERA

1

a : a serial drama performed originally on a daytime radio or television program and chiefly characterized by tangled interpersonal situations and melodramatic or sentimental treatment

b : a series of real-life events resembling a soap opera

2

: the melodrama and sentimentality characteristic of a soap opera <even cops need a little soap opera in their lives — Joseph Wambaugh>; also : something (as a novel) having such qualities

— soap–op·er·at·ic \ˈsōp-ˌä-pə-ˈra-tik\ adjective

Examples of SOAP OPERA

1. She loves to watch daytime soap operas.
2. <the movie started out well, but quickly devolved into improbable soap opera>

Origin of SOAP OPERA

from its sponsorship by soap manufacturers

First Known Use: 1939

Related to SOAP OPERA

Synonyms

goo, mush, schmaltz (also schmalz), sludge, slush, corn, sorghum

Related Words

claptrap, drivel, rubbish, tripe

soap opera

noun    (Concise Encyclopedia)

Broadcast serial drama, characterized by a permanent cast of actors, a continuing story, tangled interpersonal situations, and a melodramatic or sentimental style. Its name derived from the soap and detergent manufacturers who originally often sponsored such programs on radio. Soap operas began in the early 1930s as 15-minute radio episodes and continued on television from the early 1950s as 30-minute and later hour-long episodes. Usually broadcast during the day and aimed at housewives, they initially focused on middle-class family life, but by the 1970s their content had expanded to include a wider variety of characters and situations and a greater degree of sexual explicitness. In the 1980s similar series began to be aired in prime-time evening hours (e.g., Dallas and Dynasty). See also Carlton E. Morse; Irna Phillips.