opera

1 of 2
Synonyms of operanext

plural of opus

opera

2 of 2

noun

op·​era ˈä-p(ə-)rə How to pronounce opera (audio)
Southern also ˈä-prē
1
: a drama set to music and made up of vocal pieces with orchestral accompaniment and orchestral overtures (see overture entry 1 sense 2) and interludes (see interlude sense 2)
specifically : grand opera
Beethoven composed only one opera.
2
: the score (see score entry 1 sense 6) of a musical drama
The composer finished the opera in just six weeks.
3
: the performance of an opera
The opera was delayed a half hour due to technical difficulties.
also : a house where operas are performed
We'll meet you at the opera at 7 p.m.

Examples of opera in a Sentence

Noun I am going to an opera tonight.
Recent Examples on the Web
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.
Noun
Shen Hall, with 1,200 seats, draws inspiration from the spatial form of classical opera houses and can accommodate various performance types, including Baroque opera, classical opera, local operas, and dramas. — Wendy Wang, Architectural Digest, 22 Oct. 2026 His father, Stanley Silverman, is a composer who has arranged music for Sting and Paul Simon; his mother, Mary (Delson) Silverman,was an opera singer, and his stepmother a violinist. — Tony Maglio, HollywoodReporter, 22 Oct. 2026 Rooms With the Hanoi Opera House just steps away, each of Capella Hanoi's 47 rooms and suites imagines the private quarters of an opera legend. — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 22 Oct. 2026 Theater Alliance, known for staging socially conscious plays, and In Series, which breaks down the rigid traditions of opera, will trade off shows in the black box (alternating who gets it for holidays, for example). — Rudi Greenberg, Washington Post, 21 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for opera

Word History

Etymology

Noun

borrowed from Italian, "work, labor, artistic production, drama set to music (originally short for opera musicale, opera in musica)," going back to Latin, "activity, effort, attention, work," collective derivative from oper-, opus "work, effort, product of labor" — more at opus

First Known Use

Noun

1848, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of opera was in 1848

Phrases Containing opera

Browse Nearby Words

opepe
opera
opéra ballet
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Opera.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/opera. Accessed 27 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation

Kids Definition

opera

1 of 2

plural of opus

opera

2 of 2 noun
op·​era ˈäp-(ə-)rə How to pronounce opera (audio)
1
: a play in which usually the entire text is sung with orchestral accompaniment
2
: the performance of an opera
operatic
ˌäp-ə-ˈrat-ik
adjective

More from Merriam-Webster on opera

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for opera

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about opera

Love words? Need even more definitions?

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

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of milieu

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

'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

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Why do we 'bury the lede?'

'Za' and 9 Other Words to Help You Win at SCRABBLE
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
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
different halloween monsters in silhouette
A Monstrous Vocab Quiz Words That Go Bump in the Night
See All