Standard Lemma guide

docudrama

noun · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • Received-Pronunciation: /ˈdɒkjʊˌdɹɑːmə/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • General-American: /ˈdɑkjəˌdɹɑmə/
  • General-American: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • CMU ARPABET: D OW2 K AH0 D R AE1 M AH0 Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

noun

Meaning 1

A type of drama (a film, play, television show, etc.) that combines elements of documentary and drama, to some extent showing real events and to some extent using actors performing recreations of documented events.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: US, countable, uncountable

Topics: broadcasting, drama, dramaturgy, entertainment, film, lifestyle, media, television, theater

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: drama documentary, dramamentary

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

a film or TV program presenting the facts about a person or event

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: documentary, documentary film, infotainment

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: movie, film, picture, moving picture, moving-picture show, motion picture, motion-picture show, picture show, pic, flick

History

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *deḱ- Proto-Indo-European *-yeti Proto-Indo-European *-éyeti Proto-Indo-European *doḱ-éye-ti Proto-Italic *dokejō Proto-Italic *dokeō Latin doceō Proto-Indo-European *-mn̥ Proto-Indo-European *-mn̥tom Proto-Italic *-mentom Latin -mentum Latin documentumbor. French document Proto-Indo-European *-yósder. Proto-Italic *-āzios Latin -āriusder. French -aire French documentairebor. English documentary Ancient Greek δράω (dráō) Proto-Indo-European *-mn̥ Ancient Greek -μᾰ (-mă) Ancient Greek δρᾶμᾰ (drâmă)bor. Late Latin drāmabor. English drama blend English docudrama Blend of documentary + drama.

Across languages

Translations

47 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Arabic: دراما وثائقية — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • Basque: dokudrama — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • Bulgarian: документа́лна дра́ма (dokumentálna dráma) — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • Catalan: docudrama — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • Chinese Mandarin: 紀錄式劇情片 /纪录式剧情片 (jìlùshìjùqíngpiān, jìlùshìjùqíngpiàn) — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • Chinese Mandarin: 劇情式紀錄片 /剧情式纪录片 (jùqíngshìjìlùpiān, jùqíngshìjìlùpiàn) — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • Chinese Mandarin: 文獻紀錄片 /文献纪录片 (wénxiànjìlùpiān, wénxiànjìlùpiàn) — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • Czech: dokumentární drama — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • Danish: dokudrama — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • Danish: dramadokumentar — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • Dutch: docudrama — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • Finnish: dokudraama — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • Finnish: draamadokumentti — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • French: docudrame — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • French: docufiction — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • French: documentaire dramatique — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • Georgian: დოკუდრამა (doḳudrama) — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • Georgian: დოკუმენტალური დრამა (doḳumenṭaluri drama) — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • Georgian: დოკუმენტური დრამა (doḳumenṭuri drama) — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • German: Dokudrama — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • Greek: δραματοποιημένο ντοκιμαντέρ (dramatopoiiméno ntokimantér) — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • Hebrew: דוקו־דרמה — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • Indonesian: drama dokumenter — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • Italian: docudramma — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • Japanese: ドキュドラマ (dokyudorama) — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • Japanese: ドキュメンタリードラマ (dokyumentarīdorama) — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • Kannada: ಸಾಕ್ಷ್ಯಚಿತ್ರ ನಾಟಕ (sākṣyacitra nāṭaka) — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • Korean: 다큐드라마 (dakyudeurama) — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • Korean: 다큐멘터리 드라마 (dakyumenteori deurama) — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • Central Kurdish: بەڵگەفیلمی درامایی (bellgefîlmî dramayî) — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • Latin: lūdus documentarius — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • Malay: drama dokumentari — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • Norwegian Bokmål: dokudrama — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • Persian: مستند درام — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • Polish: docudrama — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • Portuguese: docudrama — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • Russian: документа́льная дра́ма (dokumentálʹnaja dráma) — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • Serbo-Croatian: dokudrȁma — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • Serbo-Croatian: dokumentarna drȁma — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • Spanish: docudrama — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • Spanish: drama documental — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • Swedish: dramadokumentär — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • Thai: ละครสารคดี — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • Turkish: yarı belgesel film — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • Ukrainian: документа́льна дра́ма (dokumentálʹna dráma) — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • Urdu: دستاویزی ڈراما — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama
  • Western Punjabi: دستاویزی ڈراما (dstāvezī ḍrāmā) — type of drama that combines elements of documentary and drama