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The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 (gcide)

Comedy \Com"e*dy\, n.; pl. {Comedies}. [F. com['e]die, L.
comoedia, fr. Gr. ?; ? a jovial festivity with music and
dancing, a festal procession, an ode sung at this procession
(perh. akin to ? village, E. home) ? to sing; for comedy
was originally of a lyric character. See {Home}, and {Ode}.]
A dramatic composition, or representation of a bright and
amusing character, based upon the foibles of individuals, the
manners of society, or the ludicrous events or accidents of
life; a play in which mirth predominates and the termination
of the plot is happy; -- opposed to {tragedy}.
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With all the vivacity of comedy. --Macaulay.
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Are come to play a pleasant comedy. --Shak.
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Drama \Dra"ma\ (dr[aum]"m[.a] or dr[=a]"m[.a]; 277), n. [L.
drama, Gr. dra^ma, fr. dra^n to do, act; cf. Lith. daryti.]
1. A composition, in prose or poetry, accommodated to action,
and intended to exhibit a picture of human life, or to
depict a series of grave or humorous actions of more than
ordinary interest, tending toward some striking result. It
is commonly designed to be spoken and represented by
actors on the stage.
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A divine pastoral drama in the Song of Solomon.
--Milton.
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2. A series of real events invested with a dramatic unity and
interest. "The drama of war." --Thackeray.
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Westward the course of empire takes its way;
The four first acts already past,
A fifth shall close the drama with the day;
Time's noblest offspring is the last. --Berkeley.
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The drama and contrivances of God's providence.
--Sharp.
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3. Dramatic composition and the literature pertaining to or
illustrating it; dramatic literature.
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Note: The principal species of the drama are {tragedy} and
{comedy}; inferior species are {tragi-comedy},
{melodrama}, {operas}, {burlettas}, and {farces}.
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{The romantic drama}, the kind of drama whose aim is to
present a tale or history in scenes, and whose plays (like
those of Shakespeare, Marlowe, and others) are stories
told in dialogue by actors on the stage. --J. A. Symonds.
Dramatic