melodramatize

verb

Definition of melodramatizenext
as in to put on

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for melodramatize
  1. put on
  2. overemphasize
  3. play up
  4. exaggerate
  5. overstate
  6. elaborate
Verb
  • When mice at Patricia Hunt’s lab at Washington State University began losing fetuses with devastating birth defects — facial deformities and missing hindquarters — or failed to reproduce at all, Hunt immediately put on her detective hat.
    — Sandee LaMotte, CNN Money, 7 Aug. 2026
  • Because the products are local, they aren't put on planes or trucks to travel long distances to get here.
    — Anne Makovec, CBS News, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of put on
Verb
  • But whereas weaker seasons have relied on this feeding loop to the point of exhaustion, overemphasizing one side or the other, this time, new challenges keep emerging, giving personality quirks new angles through which to be reflected.
    — Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 4 Aug. 2026
  • Mishiali’s filmmaking does not overemphasize the brutality of this situation.
    — Elena Lazic, Variety, 15 July 2026
Definition of overemphasize
Verb
  • Forty-three football-playing schools are playing up in class this season.
    — Todd Holcomb, AJC.com, 12 Aug. 2026
  • In advertisements, Tiffany plays up his roots on a Wisconsin dairy farm and love of the Green Bay Packers and a brandy old fashioned.
    — Clay Masters, NPR, 11 Aug. 2026
Definition of play up
Verb
  • Kennedy has also sought to personally reform the agency’s vaccine policy, firing all 17 of its vaccine advisers and replacing them with his own picks, many of whom have questioned the benefit of vaccines while exaggerating their harms.
    — Brenda Goodman, CNN Money, 7 Aug. 2026
  • Ng argued that powerful companies have exaggerated those threats to restrict open models and limit competition.
    — Ron Schmelzer, Forbes.com, 6 Aug. 2026
Definition of exaggerate
Verb
  • Many of these concerns are real, while others may be overstated.
    — Nathaniel Meyersohn, CNN Money, 11 Aug. 2026
  • In his view, the benefits of testosterone therapy are often overstated, particularly in the realm of longevity.
    — Will Stone, NPR, 10 Aug. 2026
Definition of overstate
Verb
  • Without elaborating, prosecutors have said since December that the parents were stabbed.
    — Andrew Dalton, Chicago Tribune, 12 Aug. 2026
  • Yet at some point the WNBA’s eligibility rule could become a legal dispute, which gives the WNBA and WNBPA reason to consider elaborating on its eligibility requirement.
    — Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 12 Aug. 2026
Definition of elaborate
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Browse Nearby Words

melodramatic
melodramatize
melodramatized
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Melodramatize.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/melodramatize. Accessed 14 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of vacuous

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Words of the Week - Aug. 14

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
image of a green cube out of place in a lineup of red spheres
Odd Word Out: Synonyms Vol. 2 Quiz Figure out which word isn't like the others.
See All