# melodrama
## English
### Etymology

From French mélodrame, the second element refashioned by analogy with drama; ultimately from Ancient Greek μέλος (mélos, “limb”, “member”, “song”, “tune”, “melody”) + δρᾶμα (drâma, “deed”, “theatrical act”). Compare melodrame. Cognate to German Melodram and Spanish melodrama.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ˈmɛləˌdɹɑːmə/
* Audio (Southern England):(file)

### Noun

melodrama (countable and uncountable, plural melodramas or melodramata)
* (archaic, uncountable) A kind of drama having a musical accompaniment to intensify the effect of certain scenes.
* (countable) A drama abounding in romantic sentiment and agonizing situations, with a musical accompaniment only in parts which are especially thrilling or pathetic. In opera, a passage in which the orchestra plays a somewhat descriptive accompaniment, while the actor speaks
    the melodrama in the grave digging scene of Beethoven's "Fidelio".
** 1956, Delano Ames, chapter 9, in Crime out of Mind‎:Rudolf was the bold, bad Baron of traditional melodrama. Irene was young, as pretty as a picture, fresh from a music academy in England. He was the scion of an ancient noble family; she an orphan without money or friends.
* (uncountable, figuratively, colloquial) Any situation or action which is blown out of proportion.

#### Derived terms

* melodramatic
* melodramatics
* melodramatist
* melodramatize

#### Translations
## Catalan
### Pronunciation

* IPA: (Central) [mə.luˈðɾa.mə]
* IPA: (Balearic) [mə.loˈðɾa.mə]
* IPA: (Valencia) [me.loˈðɾa.ma]

### Noun

melodrama m (plural melodrames)
* melodrama (a drama abounding in romantic sentiment and agonizing situations)
** 2020 August 11, Mònica Planas Callol, “Secrets i prejudicis a l’americana [American-style secrets and prejudices]”, in Ara‎:Si necessiteu un bon melodrama familiar, d’aquells on s’intenten guardar les aparences però en què totes les generacions de protagonistes acaben caient en una espiral de secrets, mentides, retrets, llàgrimes i desesperació, la vostra sèrie és Little fires everywhere, a Amazon Prime Video.If you need a good family melodrama, one of those that tries to keep appearances but in which all generations of protagonists end up falling into a spiral of secrets, lies, reproach, tears, and desperation, then your show is Little Fires Everywhere, on Amazon Prime Video.
* melodrama (any situation or action which is blown out of proportion)

#### Derived terms

* melodramàtic

#### Related terms

* drama

### Further reading

* “melodrama” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
* “melodrama”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2025
* “melodrama” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
* “melodrama” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.

## Norwegian Bokmål
### Etymology

From Ancient Greek μέλος (mélos) .

### Noun

melodrama n (definite singular melodramaet, indefinite plural melodrama or melodramaer, definite singular melodramaene)
* a melodrama

### References

* “melodrama” in The Bokmål Dictionary.

## Norwegian Nynorsk
### Etymology

From Ancient Greek μέλος (mélos) .

### Noun

melodrama n (definite singular melodramaet, indefinite plural melodrama, definite plural melodramaa)
* a melodrama

### References

* “melodrama” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

## Portuguese
### Pronunciation

* (Brazil) IPA: /me.loˈdɾɐ̃.mɐ/
* (Brazil) IPA: /me.loˈdɾɐ̃.mɐ/
** (Southern Brazil) IPA: /me.loˈdɾɐ.ma/
* (Portugal) IPA: /mɛ.lɔˈdɾɐ.mɐ/ [mɛ.lɔˈðɾɐ.mɐ]
* (Portugal) IPA: /mɛ.lɔˈdɾɐ.mɐ/ [mɛ.lɔˈðɾɐ.mɐ]
** (Northern Portugal) IPA: /mɛ.lɔˈdɾa.mɐ/ [mɛ.lɔˈðɾa.mɐ]
* Rhymes: (Portugal) -ɐmɐ, (Brazil) -ɐ̃mɐ
* Hyphenation: me‧lo‧dra‧ma

### Noun

melodrama m (plural melodramas)
* melodrama (romantic drama)
* (figurative) melodrama (any situation or action which is blown out of proportion)

## Serbo-Croatian
### Pronunciation

* IPA: /mêlodraːma/
* Hyphenation: me‧lo‧dra‧ma

### Noun

mȅlodrāma f (Cyrillic spelling ме̏лодра̄ма)
* melodrama

#### Declension
## Spanish
### Etymology

From Ancient Greek μέλος (mélos) and Ancient Greek δρᾶμα (drâma).

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /meloˈdɾama/ [me.loˈð̞ɾa.ma]
* Rhymes: -ama
* Syllabification: me‧lo‧dra‧ma

### Noun

melodrama m (plural melodramas)
* melodrama

#### Derived terms

* melodramático

#### Related terms

* drama

#### Further reading

* “melodrama”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 2024 December 10