First Known Use: 1939
Dictionary
soap opera
noun
: a television or radio program that has continuing stories about the daily lives and problems of a group of people
Full Definition of SOAP OPERA
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 (as a novel) having such qualities
— soap–op·er·at·ic \ˈsōp-ˌä-pə-ˈra-tik\ adjective
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Origin of SOAP OPERA
from its sponsorship by soap manufacturers
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