1
: an act or round of applause
2
: enthusiastic approval
—usually used in plural
received the plaudits of the critics
Did you know?
You earn plaudits for your etymological knowledge if you can connect plaudit to words besides the familiar applaud and applause. A word coined by shortening Latin plaudite, meaning "applaud," plaudit had gained approval status in English by the first years of the 17th century. Latin plaudite is a form of the verb plaudere, meaning "to applaud"; plaudere, in turn, is ancestor to explode, plausible, and the archaic displode (a synonym of explode).
Examples of plaudit in a Sentence
the proud parents bragged that their daughter had received many plaudits for her academic achievements
Recent Examples on the Web
Swedish superstar Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who’s winning plaudits for his no-nonsense commentary on Fox Sports during this World Cup, played for clubs like Barcelona, AC Milan, Manchester United, and Paris Saint-Germain.
—
Sean Gregory, Time, 20 June 2026
That Taylor’s statement also conforms to the conventions of creative-writing-seminar plaudits is part of the problem.
—Katy Waldman, New Yorker, 10 June 2026
Although the MacBook Neo only ships with 8GB of memory and has won widespread plaudits for its performance, Apple memory and RAM on Windows 11 laptops are not directly comparable.
—Barry Collins, Forbes.com, 1 June 2026
His form in the second half of the season did earn plaudits and, despite the disappointment of Friday’s announcement, his display in United’s final game of it — a comprehensive 3-0 win at Brighton and Hove Albion — certainly strengthened his case, but Tuchel’s decision had long since been made.
—Rob Tanner, New York Times, 27 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for plaudit
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Sean Gregory, Time, 20 June 2026
That Taylor’s statement also conforms to the conventions of creative-writing-seminar plaudits is part of the problem.
—Katy Waldman, New Yorker, 10 June 2026
Although the MacBook Neo only ships with 8GB of memory and has won widespread plaudits for its performance, Apple memory and RAM on Windows 11 laptops are not directly comparable.
—Barry Collins, Forbes.com, 1 June 2026
His form in the second half of the season did earn plaudits and, despite the disappointment of Friday’s announcement, his display in United’s final game of it — a comprehensive 3-0 win at Brighton and Hove Albion — certainly strengthened his case, but Tuchel’s decision had long since been made.
—Rob Tanner, New York Times, 27 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for plaudit
Cite this Entry
“Plaudit.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/plaudit. Accessed 23 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
