applaud
Americanverb (used without object)
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applauds,
present (3rd person singular)
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applauded,
past participle, past
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applauding
present participle
-
to clap the hands as an expression of approval, appreciation, acclamation, etc..
They applauded wildly at the end of the opera.
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to express approval; give praise; acclaim.
verb (used with object)
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applauds,
present (3rd person singular)
-
applauded,
past participle, past
-
applauding
present participle
-
to clap the hands so as to show approval, appreciation, etc., of.
to applaud an actor; to applaud a speech.
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to praise or express approval of.
to applaud a person's ambition.
verb
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to indicate approval of (a person, performance, etc) by clapping the hands
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(usually tr) to offer or express approval or praise of (an action, person, or thing)
I applaud your decision
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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applaudernoun
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overapplaudverb
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reapplaudverb
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applaudingadjective
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self-applaudingadjective
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unapplaudedadjective
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unapplaudingadjective
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well-applaudedadjective
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applaudinglyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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applaudsimple
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applaudssimple
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have applaudedperfect
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has applaudedperfect
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am applaudingprogressive
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are applaudingprogressive
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is applaudingprogressive
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have been applaudingperfect progressive
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has been applaudingperfect progressive
Past
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applaudedsimple
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had applaudedperfect
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was applaudingprogressive
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were applaudingprogressive
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had been applaudingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of applaud
1530–40; < Latin applaudere, equivalent to ap- ap- 1 + plaudere to clap the hands
Explanation
To applaud is to show approval, encouragement, or appreciation. You can applaud by clapping your hands at a performance, or you can applaud with just your mouth, as when you tell someone "I applaud your decision to start exercising." The verb applaud goes back to the Latin verb applaudere, "to clap," and it came into English use in the 15th century. Part of the word applaud is laud, which means "praise," and laud is close in spelling to loud. When you applaud, you give loud praise by clapping you hands together. If you really like what someone is doing and want to pat them on the back for it or show encouragement, you might just say "I applaud your efforts."
Vocabulary lists containing applaud
"Macbeth" Vocabulary from Act V
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"Casey at the Bat"
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Unit 3, Week 1
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Toward the end of the performance Raul stood and gestured to the crowd that they should stand and applaud.
From Barron's ● Aug. 13, 2026
New graduates lament that while their college professors discouraged the use of AI tools, hiring managers applaud it.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 7, 2026
The teenager did not receive his medal until he returned to the team hotel on Saturday evening, with the other members of the team gathering to applaud him.
From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026
The audience at the reviewed performance kept wanting to applaud one side or another.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 1, 2026
Traditionally, with rare exceptions, members of the media don’t applaud at press conferences, since it would be considered an endorsement of what the speaker is saying, rather than just reporting the information being given.
From "Endgame" by Frank Brady
“Kars4Kids applauds today’s court ruling allowing its ads to continue airing in California while the appeals process continues,” a spokesperson for Kars4Kids said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 6, 2026
Certified financial planner Cary Carbonaro applauds Mitchum for taking time to evaluate her whole financial picture and not rushing to make changes in the wake of her divorce.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 7, 2026
Industry expert Andrew Jenkinson said that while he "applauds anyone trying to do something different", he did not believe the capsules would gain widespread appeal.
From BBC ● Jan. 24, 2026
"It's like attending your own funeral and even the mourners are like 'woo-hoo!' I can't imagine anything that would be more uncomfortable, standing there while the crowd applauds your opponent."
From Salon ● Jan. 7, 2025
No one applauds, because Dad isn’t home yet.
From "Muffled" by Jennifer Gennari
When he was sent out for his first warm-up during the game, he applauded the positive reception he got from United supporters in the corner he was running towards.
From BBC ● Aug. 15, 2026
After an initial wave of backlash, the New York congresswoman’s videos of her fertility journey have generally been applauded by women on both sides of the aisle.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 15, 2026
On Thursday they shouted "I am Fidel" and applauded throughout the performances and speeches.
From Barron's ● Aug. 13, 2026
It feels as though Ifab is trying to improve an imperfect situation and it should be applauded for that.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
Everyone in the restaurant applauded and cheered as they took their bows.
From "Forged by Fire" by Sharon M. Draper
At the moment of totality, people began applauding.
From Barron's ● Aug. 12, 2026
In his review for The Wrap, William Bibbiani, external described it as the strongest entry in Holland's Spider-Man series, applauding its emotional focus and character-driven storytelling, and praising its "wonderful, propulsive quality".
From BBC ● Aug. 1, 2026
No, peptides are not “legal” now, but proponents are applauding the outcome.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 31, 2026
She emerged from the weekend with half the media world and a chorus of Hollywood celebrities wildly applauding her bravery.
From Salon ● Jul. 29, 2026
The Gryffindors all along the table were applauding him; the Weasleys and Hermione all wished him good luck, and he headed off out of the Great Hall with Cedric, Fleur, and Viktor.
From "Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire" by J. K. Rowling
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
