Applaud

How to spell applaud

7 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce applaud

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does applaud mean?

1. verbTo show approval, especially by clapping the hands, or more broadly to praise something.

Applaud in a sentence

• The audience began to applaud as the curtain fell.

• Critics tend to applaud films that take genuine risks.

Where does applaud come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This verb comes from the Latin applaudere, meaning 'to clap the hands in approval', which was formed from the prefix ad- 'to, toward' (smoothed to ap- before the p) and the verb plaudere, meaning 'to clap, beat, or strike'. The original Roman sense was very literal: striking the palms together to show pleasure at a performance. English took the word in during the 1500s, keeping the figurative sense of expressing approval as well as the physical act of clapping. The same plaudere root gives us 'plaudits', 'applause', and even 'explode', which once meant to drive an actor off the stage by clapping and hooting. Remembering that double-p comes from ad- meeting plaudere helps fix the spelling, while the 'au' echoes the Latin spelling rather than the 'aw' sound you hear.

How the word is built

• ap- (from ad-: to, toward)
• plaud (from plaudere: to clap)