melodramatic

[mel-uh-druh-mat-ik]

adjective

1. of, like, or befitting melodrama.

2. exaggerated and emotional or sentimental; sensational or sensationalized; overdramatic.

noun

1. melodramatics, melodramatic writing or behavior.

Other Word Forms

• melodramatically adverb
• nonmelodramatic adjective
• nonmelodramatically adverb
• unmelodramatic adjective
• unmelodramatically adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of melodramatic¹

First recorded in 1810–20; melodrama + (drama)tic

Example Sentences

But in screenwriter Noah Pink’s melodramatic imagining of incidents both well-documented and mysterious, one can see this Hollywood veteran on a mission to loosen the shackles of his reputation and have some nasty, brutish fun.

From Los Angeles Times

Even the sleepiest off-season Sunday can suddenly erupt into the latest melodramatic controversy, with rumours, counter-rumours and abrupt U-turns a matter of course.

From BBC

The cinematography tries too hard to capture melodramatic modern police procedurals with their choking clouds of haze.

From Los Angeles Times

Quigley’s acting is as melodramatic and artificial as Nina’s was said to be before her travails and losses transformed her talent.

From Los Angeles Times

In this melodramatic tale, the Peasant Revolt, as well as the Second, Third and Fourth revolts, are all brutally suppressed by the forces of oligarchy: “We will grind you revolutionists down under our heel.”

From Salon

Related Words

• theatrical