Definitions for tragedy
ˈtrædʒ ɪ ditragedy

Princeton's WordNetRate this definition:2.7 / 3 votes

1. calamity, catastrophe, disaster, tragedy, cataclysmnoun

   an event resulting in great loss and misfortune

   "the whole city was affected by the irremediable calamity"; "the earthquake was a disaster"

2. tragedynoun

   drama in which the protagonist is overcome by some superior force or circumstance; excites terror or pity

WiktionaryRate this definition:3.8 / 4 votes

1. tragedynoun

   A drama or similar work, in which the main character is brought to ruin or otherwise suffers the extreme consequences of some tragic flaw or weakness of character.

2. tragedynoun

   The genre of such works, and the art of producing them.

3. tragedynoun

   A disastrous event, especially one involving great loss of life or injury.

4. Etymology: From the tragedie, from the tragedie, from the tragoedia, from the, from + ᾠδή, a reference to the goat-satyrs of the theatrical plays of the Dorians.

Samuel Johnson's DictionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. TRAGEDYnoun

   Etymology: tragedie, Fr. tragœdia, Lat.

   1. A dramatick representation of a serious action.

   Thousands more, that yet suspect no peril,
   Will now conclude their plotted tragedy. William Shakespeare.

   All our tragedies are of kings and princes; but you never see a poor man have a part unless it be as a chorus, or to fill up the scenes, to dance, or to be derided. Jeremy Taylor, holy living.

   Imitate the sister of painting, tragedy; which employs the whole forces of her art in the main action. Dryden.

   An anthem to their god Dionysus, whilst the goat stood at his altar to be sacrificed, was called the goat-song or tragedy. Thomas Rymer, Tragedies of the last Age.

   There to her heart sad tragedy addrest
   The dagger, wont to pierce the tyrant’s breast. Alexander Pope.

   2. Any mournful or dreadful event.

   I shall laugh at this,
   That they, who brought me in my master’s hate,
   I live to look upon their tragedy. William Shakespeare, Rich. III.

   I look upon this now done in England as another act of the same tragedy which was lately begun in Scotland. Charles I .

WikipediaRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Tragedy

   Tragedy is a song released by the Bee Gees, written by Barry, Robin & Maurice Gibb, included on their 1979 album Spirits Having Flown. The single reached number one in the UK in February 1979 and repeated the feat the following month on the US Billboard Hot 100. In New Zealand, Tragedy succeeded the number 1 hit for 6 weeks from 18 March - 22 April.

ChatGPTRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. tragedy

   Tragedy is a genre of literary works, dramas or events, typically marked by a serious theme and often ending in a sorrowful or disastrous conclusion that provokes pity or terror. It usually involves main characters whose flaws or poor decisions lead to their downfall or defeat. It can also refer to any disastrous or catastrophic incident or situation in real life.

Webster DictionaryRate this definition:3.5 / 2 votes

1. Tragedynoun

   a dramatic poem, composed in elevated style, representing a signal action performed by some person or persons, and having a fatal issue; that species of drama which represents the sad or terrible phases of character and life

2. Tragedynoun

   a fatal and mournful event; any event in which human lives are lost by human violence, more especially by unauthorized violence

FreebaseRate this definition:4.7 / 3 votes

1. Tragedy

   Tragedy is a form of drama based on human suffering that invokes in its audience an accompanying catharsis or pleasure in the viewing. While many cultures have developed forms that provoke this paradoxical response, the term tragedy often refers to a specific tradition of drama that has played a unique and important role historically in the self-definition of Western civilization. That tradition has been multiple and discontinuous, yet the term has often been used to invoke a powerful effect of cultural identity and historical continuity—"the Greeks and the Elizabethans, in one cultural form; Hellenes and Christians, in a common activity," as Raymond Williams puts it. From its obscure origins in the theatre of ancient Greece 2,500 years ago, from which there survives only a fraction of the work of Aeschylus, Sophocles and Euripides, through its singular articulations in the works of Shakespeare, Lope de Vega, Racine, and Schiller, to the more recent naturalistic tragedy of Strindberg, Beckett's modernist meditations on death, loss and suffering, and Müller's postmodernist reworkings of the tragic canon, tragedy has remained an important site of cultural experimentation, negotiation, struggle, and change. A long line of philosophers—which includes Plato, Aristotle, Saint Augustine, Voltaire, Hume, Diderot, Hegel, Schopenhauer, Kierkegaard, Nietzsche, Freud, Benjamin, Camus, Lacan, and Deleuze—have analysed, speculated upon, and criticised the tragic form.

Chambers 20th Century DictionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Tragedy

   traj′e-di, n. a species of drama in which the action and language are elevated, and the catastrophe sad: any mournful and dreadful event.—n. Tragē′dian, an actor of tragedy:—fem. Tragē′dienne.—adjs. Trag′ic, -al, pertaining to tragedy: sorrowful: calamitous.—adv. Trag′ically.—ns. Trag′icalness; Trag′i-com′edy, a dramatic piece in which grave and comic scenes are blended.—adjs. Trag′i-com′ic, -al.—adv. Trag′i-com′ically. [Lit. 'goat-song,' so called either from the old dramas being exhibited when a goat was sacrificed, or from a goat being the prize, or because the actors were dressed in goat-skins—L. tragœdia—Gr. tragōdia—tragos, a he-goat, aoidos, ōdos, a singer—aeidein, adein, to sing.]

Suggested ResourcesRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. tragedy

   Song lyrics by tragedy -- Explore a large variety of song lyrics performed by tragedy on the Lyrics.com website.

Matched Categories

1. • Drama

British National Corpus

1. Nouns Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'tragedy' in Nouns Frequency: #1842

Anagrams for tragedy »

1. gyrated

How to pronounce tragedy?

1. Alex

   US English

   David

   US English

   Mark

   US English

   Daniel

   British

   Libby

   British

   Mia

   British

   Karen

   Australian

   Hayley

   Australian

   Natasha

   Australian

   Veena

   Indian

   Priya

   Indian

   Neerja

   Indian

   Zira

   US English

   Oliver

   British

   Wendy

   British

   Fred

   US English

   Tessa

   South African

How to say tragedy in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of tragedy in Chaldean Numerology is: 2

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of tragedy in Pythagorean Numerology is: 8

Examples of tragedy in a Sentence

1. Dwight D Eisenhower:

   There's no tragedy in life like the death of a child. Things never get back to the way they were.

2. Goa Kerle:

   The inferior man hates the truth. That is no tragedy. The tragedy is, he isn't aware he does.

3. Tony Tyler:

   To the flying public an air tragedy is an air tragedy, regardless of how it is classified, in 2014 we saw a reduction in the number of fatal accidents - and that would be true even if we were to include MH17 in the total.

4. John Leonard:

   The original Marx quote (rough) History repeats twice, the first time as tragedy, the second as farce. The addition by Leonard; Technology repeats twice, the first time as farce, and the second as tragedy

5. Royal Caribbean:

   CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR OUR LIFESTYLE NEWSLETTER Royal Caribbean has claimed that security camera footage shows Anello leaning out of the open window prior to Chloes death. The cruise liner sought to dismiss the case based on the security footage, blaming Anellos negligence for the tragedy. However, Winkleman alleges that the security footage is deceptive and only uses two angles of the available 13 cameras. The lawyer has filed a motion to both strike the video footage submitted and for Royal Caribbean to produce all video footage from all of the cameras. In a previous statement shared with Fox News by Royal Caribbean, the cruise liner called the incident a heartbreaking tragedy, but offered no further comment on its motion to dismiss. FOLLOW US ON FACEBOOK FOR MORE FOX LIFESTYLE NEWS The death of Chloe Wiegand is undeniably a heartbreaking tragedy that has prompted a criminal prosecution of Chloes step-grandfather and a civil lawsuit brought by the Wiegand family attorneys. Our position in the matter is outlined in our Motion to Dismiss, which we were legally mandated to do in response to the civil complaint. The motion was filed in Federal Court in South Florida and is available to the public.

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