op·era
ˈä-p(ə-)rə 
Southern also ˈä-prē
1
: a drama set to music and made up of vocal pieces with orchestral accompaniment and orchestral overtures (see overture entry 1 sense 2) and interludes (see interlude sense 2)
2
: the score (see score entry 1 sense 6) of a musical drama
The composer finished the opera in just six weeks.
3
: the performance of an opera
The opera was delayed a half hour due to technical difficulties.
also
: a house where operas are performed
We'll meet you at the opera at 7 p.m.
Examples of opera in a Sentence
Noun
I am going to an opera tonight.
Recent Examples on the Web
Pauline J. Yao, Artforum, 2 May 2026
For an all-important sit-down dinner set inside Leonardo da Vinci’s Last Supper Museum, a team of Italian scenic painters—led by a woman who manages backdrops for an opera in Rome—built and painted a replica on a local soundstage that was about ¾ the size of the original.
—Mara Reinstein, Architectural Digest, 1 May 2026
The result is an epic rock opera complete with a suite of characters and an epic story that has also been turned into an album-accompanying comic created by Rich Ragsdale.
—Steve Spaleta, Space.com, 1 May 2026
The rooms The 51 rooms are spread across four floors, each with a music theme—contemporary, classical, opera, or jazz.
—Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 30 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for opera
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Noun
Song of the Goddess, 1992, which Pau made while living in New York, is a tribute to the secret real-life romance between two female Cantonese opera stars, Yam Kim-fai and Pak Suet-sin.
—Pauline J. Yao, Artforum, 2 May 2026
For an all-important sit-down dinner set inside Leonardo da Vinci’s Last Supper Museum, a team of Italian scenic painters—led by a woman who manages backdrops for an opera in Rome—built and painted a replica on a local soundstage that was about ¾ the size of the original.
—Mara Reinstein, Architectural Digest, 1 May 2026
The result is an epic rock opera complete with a suite of characters and an epic story that has also been turned into an album-accompanying comic created by Rich Ragsdale.
—Steve Spaleta, Space.com, 1 May 2026
The rooms The 51 rooms are spread across four floors, each with a music theme—contemporary, classical, opera, or jazz.
—Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 30 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for opera
Cite this Entry
“Opera.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/opera. Accessed 6 May. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
opera
1 of 2plural of opus
opera
2 of 2 noun
op·era
ˈäp-(ə-)rə
1
: a play in which usually the entire text is sung with orchestral accompaniment
2
: the performance of an opera
operatic
adjective
ˌäp-ə-ˈrat-ik
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