ˌBeggar's ˈOpera, The BrE AmE
a funny ↑ opera by John Gay, first produced in 1728. It tells the story of a thief called Macheath, who is sent to Newgate prison, where he meets a woman called Lucy and makes his wife Polly jealous. A modern opera called the ↑ Threepenny Opera , by Bertolt Brecht, is based on this.