Meaning

noun an event resulting in great loss and misfortune

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

originFrom the Middle English tragedie, from the Old French tragedie, from the Latin tragoedia, from the Ancient Greek τραγῳδία (tragōidía, “epic play, tragedy”), from τράγος (trágos, “male goat”) + ᾠδή (ōidḗ, “song”), possibly a reference to the goat-satyrs of the theatrical plays of the Dorians, or according to Beekes possibly to a goat given as prize, though the etymology remains uncertain.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 3.0