opera

opera — noun

1. a stage work where the story is told mainly through singing with orchestral musi

1.nounA2
Definition

a stage work where the story is told mainly through singing with orchestral music, or this type of music and performance in general

Example

Lena sang in an opera at the city theater last winter.

pattern: sing in an opera

We dressed up and went to the opera in Taipei.

pattern: go to the opera

Common collocations
  • opera singer
  • opera company
  • comic opera
  • grand opera
  • go to the opera
Synonyms
  • musical

    a musical usually includes spoken dialogue, unlike opera

  • operetta

    often shorter, lighter, and more humorous than a full opera

  • music drama

    a more formal literary term, not the everyday word

Grammar Patterns

go to the opera

sing in an opera

write an opera

Usage Note

Countable for one work or one performance, as in an opera by Mozart. Often uncountable when you mean the art form in general, as in She studies opera.

Common Mistakes

We went to opera on Friday.
We went to the opera on Friday.
Use the before opera when you mean the activity of seeing one.

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

Opera is the usual word for a stage work where the story is carried mostly by singing with orchestral music. A musical is also a stage show with songs, but it normally has spoken dialogue too. Operetta is closer to opera, yet it is often shorter, lighter, and more playful in tone. Ballet tells a stage story through dance rather than sung words, so it belongs to a different performing art. Use opera when you mean works like Carmen or La Traviata. You can say We went to the opera last night, but We went to the musical last night suggests a different kind of show.

opera ↗musical ↗operettaballet ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

  • opera singer
  • opera house
  • opera company
  • comic opera

Phrases

  • go to the opera
  • sing in an opera
  • write an opera

Etymology

LatinItalianEnglish

Opera came into English from Italian opera, a word that originally meant a work or piece of work. It goes back to Latin opera and the related Latin word opus. In English, the name became attached to this art form because it brings together singing, music, acting, and stage presentation in one complete work.