congratulation or congratulations

[njt2009]

What's the difference between congratulation and congratulations?

 

[emsr2d2]

What's the difference between congratulation and congratulations?

Congratulation - the act of expressing joy or acknowledgement

Congratulations - the actual expression of approval or commendation


Note: I took both from the net but for some reason my laptop is refusing to post links. I Googled "congratulation definition" and simply copied from page 1 of Google.

 

[Rover_KE]

'I sent him my congratulations.'

'I sent him a letter of congratulation.'

Rover

 

[njt2009]

I found in dictionary that the word "congratulation" is often used in phural but I would like to know the reason.

 

[emsr2d2]

I found in dictionary that the word "congratulation" is often used in phural but I would like to know the reason.

My previous post gave the answer. One is the act, one is the expression (the actual word used).

 

[konungursvia]

It is a stylistic tradition which I notice in Renaissance literature in Italian and French. It was apparently considered more elegant, and more polite to offer certain verbal praise in the plural: grazie mille, merci mille fois, many thanks, salutations, greetings, saludos, congratulations, félicitations, my apologies, and so on. It's in all the Romance languages, and English, which is an adopted half-member of that family.