/ ˈmelədrɑːmə; NAmE / noun [ U , C ]
1.
a story, play or novel that is full of exciting events and in which the characters and emotions seem too exaggerated to be real :
a gripping Victorian melodrama
Instead of tragedy, we got melodrama.
2.
events, behaviour, etc. which are exaggerated or extreme :
Her love of melodrama meant that any small problem became a crisis.
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WORD ORIGIN
early 19th cent.: from French mélodrame , from Greek melos music + French drame drama.