/ˈoʊ.tɚ/
OriginFrom oat + -er (“Variety -er”). First use appears c. 1945-50, alluding to the fodder for horses, which are common in the movies.
- US, informalA movie or television show about cowboy or frontier life; a western movie.
“In recent years the western or horse opera, known in the trade as the "oater," has come to be recognized as an art form just as formal as the ballet or the symphony. […] To prove his contention that a”
“By far the more common was the low-budget "hoss opera" or "oater," ground out in relentless numbers by studios such as Universal and Republic, and designed basically for edification of the young, who ”
“While trying to run a trading post at the depths of the Great Depression, Harry Goulding heard that a Hollywood director was looking for the perfect Western backdrop for his next oater.”
Formsoaters(plural)