soap opera

noun

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 (such as a novel) having such qualities

soap-operatic

ˈsōp-ˌä-pə-ˈra-tik 

adjective

Synonyms

• corn
• goo
• mush
• schmaltz
• schmalz
• sludge
• slush
• sorghum

Examples of soap opera in a Sentence

She loves to watch daytime soap operas.

the movie started out well, but quickly devolved into improbable soap opera

Recent Examples on the Web

The commercial networks were hesitant to preempt their game shows and soap operas to present the hearings. —Stephen Battaglio, Los Angeles Times, 12 Apr. 2024

As the daytime slots on CBS evolve, PEOPLE previously reported the network is considering a new daytime soap opera. —Kelly Wynne, Peoplemag, 12 Apr. 2024

Characters and storylines lampoon big-money prime-time soap operas from an earlier era with dramatic developments involving affairs, double-crossing characters and big secrets. —Common Sense Media, Washington Post, 5 Apr. 2024

Instead, this film has the garish lighting, cloying score, and nonsensical plot of a soap opera, without any of the suspense. —Miles Klee, Rolling Stone, 26 Mar. 2024

In recent months, Instagram has become inundated with previews of short addictive dramas — soap operas for users with limited attention spans. —Mike Isaac, New York Times, 7 Mar. 2024

Outside of Yours, Mine and Ours, Leak's most prominent projects were soap operas. —Wesley Stenzel, EW.com, 28 Mar. 2024

Or is a comeback on the horizon for Paramount Global? More than four years after Shari Redstone won the battle to merge Viacom and CBS, the entertainment mogul is at a crossroads in the M&A soap opera that threatens to envelop her beloved but beleaguered media empire. —Todd Spangler, Variety, 27 Mar. 2024

She is known for her portrayal of Livia Frye on the soap opera All My Children and for her roles on Broadway. —Okla Jones, Essence, 26 Mar. 2024

Word History

Etymology

from its sponsorship by soap manufacturers

First Known Use

1938, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

soap opera

noun

: a radio or television drama presented in a series of continuing stories and characters and intended to appeal to the emotions

Etymology

so called because the advertisers on these programs were usually soap manufacturers see Word History at horse opera