Applaud role being rejected as nonsense (8)
I believe the answer is:
claptrap
'nonsense' is the definition.
(thesaurus)
'applaud role being rejected' is the wordplay.
'applaud' becomes 'clap' ('clap' can be a synonym of 'applaud').
'role' becomes 'part' ('part' can be a synonym of 'role').
'being rejected' is a reversal indicator.
'part' in reverse letter order is 'trap'.
'clap'+'trap'='CLAPTRAP'
'as' acts as a link.
(Other definitions for claptrap that I've seen before include "Bull" , "Absurd or nonsensical talk or ideas" , "Applaud snare? - that's pretentious nonsense" , "Bunk" , "Foolish or pretentious talk" .)