noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of applause
1590–1600; < Latin applausus struck upon, applauded (past participle of applaudere ), equivalent to ap- ap- 1 + plaud- clap + -tus past participle suffix
Explanation
After a theatrical performance, audience members typically use applause, or hand-clapping, to express their approval. (Of course, sometimes applause just means the audience is glad it’s time to go home.) Back in ancient Rome, actors requested applause from the audience by declaring “Plaudite!” This fact sheds light on the origin of applause — and it definitively proves that performers have been seeking approval from audiences for millennia. Oddly enough, however, it’s considered inappropriate to applaud between the movements of a piece of classical music, regardless of how much you enjoyed the performance. Some concertgoers choose to defy this rule, in spite of the nasty looks they get from neighbors.
Vocabulary lists containing applause
Academy Awards, List 2
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Spelling Practice, Unit 3
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"One Crazy Summer" by Rita Williams-Garcia, List 8
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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.
The announcements were met with applause and cries of joy from the crowd in Caracas.
From Barron's • Apr. 30, 2026
“Like me,” Trump responded, to applause from the studio audience.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 29, 2026
In the sometimes bad tempered live BBC1 TV debate, the calls for the leaders to fully publish their spending plans were greeted with a round of applause by the studio audience.
From BBC • Apr. 28, 2026
Though sometimes moody and no stranger to tantrums, Tilson Thomas once stormed off the Hollywood Bowl stage to protest noise from a police helicopter — and won applause for the stunt.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 23, 2026
Miss Mortimer seemed enthralled by the performance and approached the podium as soon as the applause died down, which, to be blunt, did not take very long.
From "The Interrupted Tale" by Maryrose Wood
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.
