plaudit
noun

- an expression of approval; praise

- a round of applause

The Cambridge Dictionary / Collins Dictionary

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WORD ORIGIN

“Plaudit” meaning “expression or round of applause, praise bestowed with audible demonstrations”, is from the 1620s, short for plaudite “an actor’s request for applause” (1560s), from Latin plaudite! “applaud!”

Plaudite was the customary appeal for applause that Roman actors made at the end of a performance. In English, the -e became silent and was ultimately dropped.

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PLAUDIT PROBLEMS IN TOKYO!

Compliment culture is very different in Japan compared to the west. Consider the following conversation:

Mr Yamamoto: “Mr Smith, your presentation today was excellent!”
Mr Smith: “Thank you Mr Yamamoto, that’s very nice of you to say.”

Although this interaction seems perfectly normal in English, Smith has unknowingly made a grave mistake: he immediately accepted the compliment. In Japanese culture, this is often seen as rude or arrogant and it doesn’t give a good first impression.

Here’s an even worse response to the same compliment:

Mr Y: “Mr Smith, your presentation today was excellent!”
Mr S: “Yes, thank you Mr Yamamoto,… my team did scrupulous fact-checking before signing off the final version.”

This is far worse because not only is Smith accepting the compliment without hesitancy, but he is acting like he deserves the praise by giving a reason. The use of an uncommon English word like “scrupulous” is not only confusing but suggests linguistic superiority.

One-on-one or among a group of Japanese, this would be a much better response:

Mr Y: “Mr Smith, your presentation today was excellent!”
Mr S: “…(long pause)… No, not yet, Mr Chairman… from here we still need to continue to keep trying harder!”

Here, not only is Smith being humble by insisting that he is not worthy of such praise, but he implies that only if he continues to work hard will he then be worthy of Mr. Yamamoto’s kind words. Using the title “Mr Chairman” rather than the surname would be a further sign of respect.

Learning how to give and respond to a compliment in Japan is not just about language, but also a lesson in culture.

Things become interesting (and complicated) in multi-cultural groups where any single response will resonate with some members and not with others!

A direct “THANK YOU!” to Alexander Litz for the excellent posting on which this example is based.

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SYNONYMS

- a mark or expression of praise, acclaim or approval

a big hand, acclaim, acclamation, accolade(s), applause, a slap on the back, a standing ovation, big hand, blandishment(s), blue ribbons, bouquets, bravos, brownie points, canonization, cheerings, cheers, citations, clappings, commemoration(s), commendation, compliments, congrats, congratulations, decorations, deification, eulogies, flattering remarks, flattery, glorification, glory, good press (words), handclapping, hat tips, hero-worship, high opinion (regard, standing), homage, honeyed words, honorable mentions, honours, hurrahs, idolization, immortalization, imprimatur, kudos, laudation(s), laurels, lionisation, mark of respect, memorials, mentions, ovation(s), pat(s) on the back (the head), PLAUDIT(s), plumes, positive feedback, praise, praising, rave review, recognition, reverence, rewards, round(s) of applause, salutation(s), salutes, speech of praise, standing O(s), standing ovation(s), testimonial(s), tribute(s), worship(ping)

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SMUGGLE OWAD into an English conversation, say something like:

“Jenny does not always get the PLAUDITS she deserves, we should change that.”

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THANKS to Gloria for suggesting today’s word

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HERZLICHEN DANK to all readers helping me keep OWAD alive with single or monthly donations at:

https://donorbox.org/please-become-a-friend-of-owad-3

and,

Paul Smith, IBAN: DE75 7316 0000 0002 5477 40