Definition of soap opera
1a
: 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 (such as a novel) having such qualities
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Merriam-Webster unabridged
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Time Traveler for soap opera
The first known use of soap opera was in 1938
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