MELODRAMA

noun Etymology: modification of French mélodrame, from Greek melos song + French drame drama, from Late Latin drama Date: 1802 1. a work (as a movie or play) characterized by extravagant theatricality and by the predominance of plot and physical action over characterization, the genre of dramatic literature constituted by such works, something resembling a ~ especially in having a sensational or theatrical quality, ~tist noun