Word Usage – Why Use ‘Hear’ Instead of ‘Listen’ in ‘Let’s Hear It for These…’

meaningword-usage

This is Kid's Box Quiz.

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It sounds like the audio is saying (link with a time stamp corresponds the following)

Let's hear it for these two clever kids in today's big final:

per this post,

Hear means that sounds come into your ears whether you want it or not, while listen means that you consciously pay attention to what you hear, that is you want to hear something: … – I'm listening, but I can't hear anything. – We heard a terrible noise when the cars crashed in front of our house.

Question

In the case of Kid's Box Quiz, why does the announcer use "hear" rather than "listen", does that mean the audience does not need to pay much attention?

Best Answer

"Let's hear it for..." is an idiomatic way of inviting the audience at a stage show or live television show recording to applaud for somebody. This is particularly common in television when cues for the audience are important for the recording process.

The expression can also be used just to express appreciation for somebody or something - this latter usage has already been addressed in this question and answer.

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