English
teledrama
Teledrama comes from Ancient Greek δρᾶμᾰ ‘a deed, act’, from Lithuanian darýti ‘to make’, and perhaps ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *dʰer- ‘to support, hold’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*dʰer-1‘to support, hold’uncertain
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*dʰor-éyeti1root named by Wiktionary · steps between not tracediterative formation of *dʰer-
- Lithuanianmoderndarýti2‘to make’uncertain
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEδράω3dráō‘to act’
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEδρᾶμᾰ3drâmă‘a deed, act’
- Late Latinmoderndrāma3
- English1500–presentdrama3
- Englishearliest quotation 1950teledrama3
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Lithuanian daryti
- 2 Wiktionary, Ancient Greek δράω, which cites Beekes
- 3 Wiktionary, English teledrama
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1950, Katharine Anne Ommanney, Pierce C. Ommanney: “Plays can be televised and have the same appeal…”.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*dʰer-Wiktionary, Lithuanian daryti‘to support, hold’uncertain
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*dʰor-éyetiWiktionary, Lithuanian darytiroot named by Wiktionary · steps between not tracediterative formation of *dʰer-
- LithuanianmoderndarýtiWiktionary, Ancient Greek δράω, which cites Beekes‘to make’uncertain
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEδράωWiktionary, English teledramadráō‘to act’
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEδρᾶμᾰWiktionary, English teledramadrâmă‘a deed, act’
- Late LatinmoderndrāmaWiktionary, English teledrama
- English1500–presentdramaWiktionary, English teledrama
- Englishearliest quotation 1950teledramaWiktionary, English teledrama. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1950, Katharine Anne Ommanney, Pierce C. Ommanney: “Plays can be televised and have the same appeal…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *dʰer- ‘to support, hold’
dark, firm, drug, dry, dare, throne, drone, drain, darn, feasible, formidable, refrain, dharma, dazed, dor, dern, 39 more
through Ancient Greek δράω ‘to act’
Today it means
noun A drama made for television.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “teledrama”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Lithuanian daryti, Ancient Greek δράω. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *dʰer- / teledrama