What's "plaques" mean?

Native speaker’s answer
Rebecca
Here, "plaque" is a type of award. It's usually a piece of wood, with some metal and engraved writing saying what the achievement or award is. It can also refer to the layer of bacteria on one's teeth. "Plaques" is the plural of "plaque" in reference to multiple awards or achievements. Ex: The dentist cleaned all the plaque off of her teeth. Ex: They put a plaque with my name on it in the sports center since I won the last competition.