opera

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈɒp.ə.ɹə/, /ˈɒp.ɹə/
• (US, Canada) IPA^(key): /ˈɑ.pɚ.ə/, /ˈɑ.pɹə/

  • Audio (US):

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• (General Australian) IPA^(key): /ˈɔp.ə.ɹə/, /ˈɔp.ɹə/

Borrowed from Italian opera. Doublet of oeuvre, opus, and ure.

opera (countable and uncountable, plural operas or opere)

1. (music) A theatrical work, combining drama, music, song and sometimes dance.
2. (music) The score for such a work.
3. (music) The genre of such works, the art of composing operas.
5. A building designed for the performance of such works; an opera house.
   • 1907 August, Robert W[illiam] Chambers, chapter VI, in The Younger Set, New York, N.Y.: D. Appleton & Company, →OCLC:

     “I don't mean all of your friends—only a small proportion—which, however, connects your circle with that deadly, idle, brainless bunch—the insolent chatterers at the opera, the gorged dowagers, […], the jewelled animals whose moral code is the code of the barnyard—!"

6. A company dedicated to performing such works.
7. (by extension) Any showy, melodramatic or unrealistic production resembling an opera.

• aria
• ballet
• masque
• melodrama
• musical comedy
• oratorio
• recitative
• singspiel
• Appendix:Glossary of opera

From Latin opera, plural of opus.

opera

1. plural of opus; a collection of work.

• pareo

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opera (definite accusative operanı, plural operalar)

1. opera

• IPA^(key): /opeɾa/ [o.pe.ɾa]
• Rhymes: -eɾa, -a
• Hyphenation: o‧pe‧ra

Borrowed from Spanish ópera, from Italian opera.

opera inan

1. opera (theatrical work, score)
2. opera (score)
3. opera (building)

opera

1. Short form of operatu (“to operate”).

• “opera”, in Euskaltzaindiaren Hiztegia [Dictionary of the Basque Academy] (in Basque), Euskaltzaindia [Royal Academy of the Basque Language]
• “opera”, in Orotariko Euskal Hiztegia [General Basque Dictionary], Euskaltzaindia, 1987–2005

opera

1. inflection of operar:
   1. third-person singular present indicative
   2. second-person singular imperative

• IPA^(key): [ˈopɛra]

opera f

1. opera

• “opera”, in Příruční slovník jazyka českého (in Czech), 1935–1957
• “opera”, in Slovník spisovného jazyka českého (in Czech), 1960–1971, 1989
• “opera”, in Akademický slovník cizích slov at prirucka.ujc.cas.cz [Academic dictionary of foreign words] (in Czech), 1995

Borrowed from Italian opera, from Latin opera, plural of opus.

• IPA^(key): /ˈoː.pəˌraː/

• Audio:

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• Hyphenation: ope‧ra

opera f (plural opera's, diminutive operaatje n)

1. opera

• operacomponist
• rockopera
• operazanger
• operazangeres

• oeuvre
• operette
• opus

From opero (“opera”) +‎ -a.

• IPA^(key): /oˈpera/
• Rhymes: -era
• Hyphenation: o‧pe‧ra

opera (accusative singular operan, plural operaj, accusative plural operajn)

1. of or relating to opera

Borrowed from Italian opera, from Latin opera.^[1]

• IPA^(key): [ˈopɛrɒ]

• Audio:

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• Hyphenation: ope‧ra
• Rhymes: -rɒ

opera (plural operák)

1. (music) opera (a theatrical work combining drama, music, song and sometimes dance)

   Synonyms: dalmű, zenedráma

2. (music) opera, opera house (building designed for the performance of such works)

   Synonyms: operaház, dalszínház

• opera in Géza Bárczi, László Országh, et al., editors, A magyar nyelv értelmező szótára [The Explanatory Dictionary of the Hungarian Language] (ÉrtSz.), Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, 1959–1962. Fifth ed., 1992: →ISBN.

• IPA^(key): /ˈɔ.pe.ra/

• Audio (IT):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɔpera
• Hyphenation: ò‧pe‧ra

From Latin opera.

• opra, ovra (archaic)

opera f (plural opere)

1. work

   Synonym: lavoro

2. means, help, services

   Synonyms: mezzo, aiuto, servigi

3. (music) opus
4. (music) opera

   Synonym: melodramma

5. institution, institute, society

   Synonyms: istituzione, istituto

• manodopera
• operaio
• operare
• operetta
• operista
• operoso

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

opera

1. inflection of operare:
   1. third-person singular present indicative
   2. second-person singular imperative

• pareo

opera

1. Rōmaji transcription of オペラ

opera f (plural operes)

1. work

From opus, operis n (“work”), via reinterpretation of its nominative plural form as a feminine singular noun.^[1]

• (Classical Latin) IPA^(key): [ˈɔ.pɛ.ra]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): [ˈɔː.pe.ra]

opera f (genitive operae); first declension

1. work, pains, exertion, effort, labour

   Synonyms: cōnātus, opus, studium, labor, cūra, mōlīmen, intēnsiō, mōlēs, pulvis

   operae non est (+ infinitive) ― there is no need to, there is no time to

   • 44 BCE, Cicero, De Officiis 2.4.14:

     […] nec hōc tempore sine hominum operā aut pāscere eās aut domāre aut tuērī aut tempestīvōs frūctūs ex iīs capere possēmus

     […] and we cannot in the present either pasture them or break them in or take care of them or obtain the timely fruit from them without the labour of humans

2. service, rendering of a service
   • 62 BCE – 43 BCE, Cicero, Epistulae ad Familiares 13.9.3:

     […] Cn. Pūpium, quī est in operīs eius societātis […]

     […] Gnaeus Pupius, who is in the service of that association […]

3. (transferred sense) (especially with dō) care, attention, exertion bestowed on something (or someone, especially a teacher)
   1. with dative
      • 163 BCE, Publius Terentius Afer, Heauton Timorumenos 1.1.63:

        Ego ĭstūc aetātis nōn amōrī operam dabam […]

        When I was your age I wasn't giving much attention to love […]

      • 121 CE, Suetonius, The Twelve Caesars Vita divi Iuli 4:

        […] absolūtōque Rhōdum sēcēdere statuit, et ad dēclīnandam invidiam et ut per ōtium ac requiem Apollōniō Molōnī clārissimō tunc dīcendī magistrō operam daret.

        […] with him acquitted, he resolved to leave for Rhodes, to escape the hate as well as to pay attention in rest and recreation to Apollonius Molon, then the most distinguished teacher of speaking.

   2. (uncommon) with ad + accusative
      • c. 180 BCE, Plautus, Casina pro.21–22:

        Vōs omnīs opere magnō esse ōrātōs volō
        benignē ut operam dētis ad nostrum gregem.

        I want you all to be asked with great care
        to kindly give attention to our company of actors.

   3. with ut/nē + subjunctive
      • c. 4 BCE – 65 CE, Seneca the Younger 2.3:

        Omnem operam dedī, ut mē multitūdinī ēdūcerem et aliquā dōte nōtābilem facerem.

        I took all the care to withdraw myself from the multitude and by some talent make myself distinguished.

      • c. 48 BCE, Julius Caesar, Commentarii de Bello Civili 1.5.3:

        Dent operam cōnsulēs, praetōrēs, tribūnī plēbis—quīque prō cōnsulibus sunt ad urbem—nē quid rēs pūblica dētrimentī capiat.

        May the consuls, praetors, tribunes of the people—and those who are near the City—take care that nothing bad happens to the Republic.

   4. with the subjunctive alone
      • 62 BCE – 43 BCE, Cicero, Epistulae ad Familiares 10.21:

        Ut exercitum locīs habeam opportūnīs, prōvinciam tuear, etiam sī ille exercitus descīerit, omniaque integra servem dabō operam

        I shall take care to keep the army in suitable locations, to protect my province even if that army defects, and to preserve the whole position uncompromised

   5. (Old Latin, rare) with the infinitive
      • 165 BCE, Publius Terentius Afer, Hecyra 4.1.37–38:

        […] magis hūmānum est quam dare operam id scīre

        […] would it not be more human to turn a blind eye to that than take the trouble to find out

4. (in the ablative and with possessive pronouns) one's fault, agency, doing
   • c. 200 BCE – 190 BCE, Plautus, Captivi 3.5:

     […] et fallāciīs abiisse eum abs tē meā operā atque astūtiā

     […] and by deceit he went away from you by my doing and astuteness?

5. (Old Latin) (in the ablative, with experior) one's own experience
   • c. 195 BCE, Plautus, Trinummus 4.1.5–8:

     spurcificum, immānem, intolerandum, vēsānum: contrā operā expertus

     obscene, frightful, intolerable, crazy: unlike how I've known you in my experience

6. (Old Latin) (with ūnā or eādem) manner, way
   • c. 200 BCE – 190 BCE, Plautus, Captivi 3.4.30–31:

     Et quidem Alcumeus atque Orestēs et Lycurgus posteā
     ūnā operā mihi sunt sodālēs quā iste.

     And then Alcumeus and Orestes and Lycurgus
     are my friends in the same manner as this one is.

7. spare time for something (see Usage notes)
   • c. 60 BCE – 54 BCE, Cicero, Epistulae ad Quintum Fratrem 3.4.4:

     […] dēest mihi quidem opera sed abest etiam ἐνθουσιασμός, quī nōn modo tempus sed etiam animum vacuum ab omnī cūrā dēsīderat.

     […] I don't have the time, but the afflatus is absent too, which needs not only time but also a soul empty of every worry.

   • 27 BCE – 25 BCE, Titus Livius, Ab Urbe Condita 4.8:

     […] neque cōnsulibus, cum tot populōrum bella imminerent, operae erat id negōtium agere.

     […] nor was it worth the time of the consuls when wars from so many tribes were threatening.

8. (usually in the plural) a day's work or labour
   • 4 CE – c. 70 CE, Columella, De Re Rustica 2.12.18:

     Cētera legūmina occupant operās sexāgintā, id est mēnsēs duōs.

     The other vegetables require sixty days' work, that is, two months.

9. (metonymic) day labourer, journeyman, farmhand
   • BCE 30, Horace, Satires 2.7.117–118:

     […] Ōcius hinc tē
     nī rapis, accēdēs opera agrō nōna Sabīnō.

     […] If you don't make off
     from here faster, you'll become the ninth farmhand on the Sabine field.

   1. (by extension) any kind of worker or labourer
      • c. 77 CE – 79 CE, Pliny the Elder, Naturalis Historia 33.73:

        Hic vōce, nūtū ēvocārī iubet operās pariterque ipse dēvolat.

        He orders by voice and by gesture the miners to be called outside, and rushes down in the same manner.

   2. (derogatory, politics) hired aider, tool, rowdy
      • 121 CE, Suetonius, The Twelve Caesars Vita Divi Augusti 3:

        […] ut equidem mīrer hunc quoque ā nōnnūllīs argentārium atque etiam inter dīvīsōrēs operāsque campestrēs prōditum

        […] so that I wonder that he too is alleged by some to have been a money-changer and even among the electoral bribe distributors and aiders in the Campus Martius

10. deed, activity, effort
    • 59 BC–AD 17, Titus Livius, Ab urbe condita libri 41.4.6:

      Ante omnēs īnsignis operā fuit C. Popilī equitis; Sabellō cognōmen erat.

      More distinguished than others in deeds was Gaius Popilius the knight; Sabello was his cognomen.

11. that which is wrought or produced, a work, handiwork
    • c. 209 BCE, Plautus, Asinaria 2.4.18–19:

      Iussīn columnīs dēicī operās araneōrum?

      Didn't I order, you scoundrel, Didn't I order the handiwork of spiders to be removed from the columns?

12. (transferred sense) Care, attention,

Opus is used mostly of the mechanical activity of work, as that of animals, slaves, and soldiers; opera supposes a free will and desire to serve).

The word, in its “spare time” meaning, is frequently used in the ante-classic period, and especially by Plautus, in the locution operae esse, meaning 'to be worth the time'. Later on, it is characteristic of Livy's style and of the archaising tendencies of Silver Latin.

First-declension noun.

• opella

• operor
• operae prētium

opera

1. nominative/accusative plural of opus

• "opera", in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• "opera", in Charlton T. Lewis (1891), An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
• opera in Enrico Olivetti, editor (2003-2025), Dizionario Latino, Olivetti Media Communication
• "opera", in Charles du Fresne du Cange’s Glossarium Mediæ et Infimæ Latinitatis (augmented edition with additions by D. P. Carpenterius, Adelungius and others, edited by Léopold Favre, 1883–1887)

opera f (4 declension)

1. opera

• IPA^(key): [ˈôːpɛrɐ]

ópera f (plural óperos) stress pattern 1

1. opera

1=oper

• IPA^(key): /ˈɔː.pɛ.ra/
• Rhymes: -ɔːpɛra

Borrowed from Italian operare.

opera (imperfect jopera, past participle operat, verbal noun operar)

1. to operate

Borrowed from Italian opera.

opera f (plural operi)

1. opera

   Alternative form: opra

From Italian opera (per musica).

opera m (definite singular operaen, indefinite plural operaer, definite plural operaene)

1. an opera
2. an opera house (also operahus)

• operahus
• operasanger, operasangerinne
• såpeopera

• “opera” in The Bokmål Dictionary.

From Italian opera (per musica).

opera m (definite singular operaen, indefinite plural operaer or operaar, definite plural operaene or operaane)

1. an opera
2. an opera house (also operahus)

• operahus
• såpeopera

• “opera” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

opera

1. inflection of operar:
   1. third-person singular present indicative
   2. second-person singular imperative

Borrowed from Italian opera, from Latin opera.

• IPA^(key): /ɔˈpɛ.ra/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɛra
• Syllabification: o‧pe‧ra

opera f

1. (music) opera (theatrical work)
2. (architecture) opera house (building)

• opera in Wielki słownik języka polskiego, Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
• opera in Polish dictionaries at PWN

• Hyphenation: o‧pe‧ra
• Rhymes: -ɛɾɐ

opera

1. inflection of operar:
   1. third-person singular present indicative
   2. second-person singular imperative

From French opérer, from Latin operare.

a opera (third-person singular present operează, past participle operat) 1st conjugation

1. to operate

From Italian opera, from Latin opera.

• IPA^(key): /ôpera/

ȍpera f (Cyrillic spelling о̏пера)

1. opera

opera

1. inflection of operar:
   1. third-person singular present indicative
   2. second-person singular imperative

• Audio (Kenya):

  (file)

opera class IX (plural opera class X)

1. opera

• Audio:

  (file)

opera c

1. (music) opera (genre)
2. (music) an opera

   Fantomen på operan

   The Phantom of the Opera

3. an opera house, an opera (building where opera is performed)
4. an opera (opera institution)

• operaföreställning
• operahus
• operett
• såpopera

• libretto
• musikal

• opera in Svensk ordbok (SO)
• opera in Svenska Akademiens ordlista (SAOL)
• opera in Svenska Akademiens ordbok (SAOB)

Borrowed from Spanish operar (“to operate”). Doublet of ubra.

• (Standard Tagalog) IPA^(key): /ʔopeˈɾa/ [ʔo.pɛˈɾa]
• Rhymes: -a
• Syllabification: o‧pe‧ra

operá (Baybayin spelling ᜂᜉᜒᜇ)

1. (medicine) act of operating (in surgery)

• operado

• → Tausug: upira

• siruhiya

Borrowed from Spanish ópera (“opera”), from Italian opera, from Latin opera (“work, labor”). Doublet of obra.

• (Standard Tagalog) IPA^(key): /ˈʔopeɾa/ [ˌʔoː.pɛˈɾa]
• Rhymes: -opeɾa
• Syllabification: o‧pe‧ra

óperá (Baybayin spelling ᜂᜉᜒᜇ)

1. (music) opera

• operasyon
• opereta

• “opera”, in Pambansang Diksiyonaryo | Diksiyonaryo.ph, Manila, 2018

From Ottoman Turkish اوپه‌را, اوپارا, اوپرا, اوپره (opera), from Italian opera, from Latin opera.

• IPA^(key): /ɔ.pe.ɾa/

opera (definite accusative operayı, plural operalar)

1. (music) opera
2. opera house

From English opera.

opera f (plural operâu)

1. opera

• operatig (“operatic”)

• R. J. Thomas, G. A. Bevan, P. J. Donovan, A. Hawke et al., editors (1950–present), “opera”, in Geiriadur Prifysgol Cymru Online (in Welsh), University of Wales Centre for Advanced Welsh & Celtic Studies