merit

[ mer-it ]

/ ˈmɛr ɪt /

noun

claim to respect and praise; excellence; worth.

something that deserves or justifies a reward or commendation; a commendable quality, act, etc.: The book's only merit is its sincerity.

merits, the inherent rights and wrongs of a matter, as a lawsuit, unobscured by procedural details, technicalities, personal feelings, etc.: The case will be decided on its merits alone.

Often merits. the state or fact of deserving; desert: to treat people according to their merits.

Roman Catholic Church. worthiness of spiritual reward, acquired by righteous acts made under the influence of grace.

Obsolete. something that is deserved, whether good or bad.

verb (used with object)

to be worthy of; deserve.

verb (used without object)

Chiefly Theology. to acquire merit.

adjective

based on merit: a merit raise of $25 a week.

Origin of merit

1175–1225; Middle English < Latin meritum act worthy of praise (or blame), noun use of neuter of meritus, past participle of merēre to earn

SYNONYMS FOR merit

1 value, credit.

SEE SYNONYMS FOR merit ON THESAURUS.COM

synonym study for merit

1. See desert³.

OTHER WORDS FROM merit

mer·it·ed·ly, adverb mer·it·less, adjective half-mer·it·ed, adjective o·ver·mer·it, verb

pre·mer·it, verb (used with object) self-mer·it, noun un·mer·it·ed, adjective un·mer·it·ed·ly, adverb well-mer·it·ed, adjective

Words nearby merit

merionethshire, merisis, meristem, meristematic, meristic, merit, merit badge, merit pay, merit system, meritocracy, meritocrat

Example sentences from the Web for merited

And there were enough of them in Soviet times that they merited their own shout-out?

The Olympics Are Already Two Days Old. This Is Your Test. |Kevin Bleyer |February 9, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
Whatever fulsome cliché of brilliance you want to attach to Hoffman is merited.

Philip Seymour Hoffman: An Actor First |Tim Teeman |February 2, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
No word on if this outrageous sum, which Stewart raised for Hurricane Sandy relief, merited a smile from the famously surly star.

Eastwood’s Wife Files for Separation; Stewart Charges $500K for Appearance |Culture Team |September 11, 2013 |DAILY BEAST
We could teach our children that we merited freedom because we let others go free.

Slaves or Slave Masters in Egypt? |Benedict Roth |April 3, 2012 |DAILY BEAST

If Vargas Llosa had never written a single novel, his nonfiction alone would have merited the Nobel.

Mario Vargas Llosa's True Genius |Allen Barra |May 31, 2011 |DAILY BEAST
It merited, then, the name of “lake;” and by that name the young people already called it.

The Bush Boys |Captain Mayne Reid
Be it how it will, I can never believe, that the Manner wherewith he entrusted his Treasures to me, merited any punishment.

Mysteries of the Rosie Cross |Anonymous
The stories of his savage mutilation of his Welsh prisoners show that he merited the name of “the Wolf.”

Medival Wales |A. G. Little
Monsieur Vigo, though he merited it, I had not room to mention in the last chapter.

The Crossing |Winston Churchill
He has merited promotion scores of times by skilful and heroic conduct in as many battles.

Military Reminiscences of the Civil War V2 |Jacob Dolson Cox

British Dictionary definitions for merited

merit

/ (ˈmɛrɪt) /

noun

worth or superior quality; excellence work of great merit

(often plural) a deserving or commendable quality or act judge him on his merits

Christianity spiritual credit granted or received for good works

the fact or state of deserving; desert

an obsolete word for reward

verb -its, -iting or -ited

(tr) to be worthy of; deserve he merits promotion

Derived forms of merit

merited, adjective meritless, adjective

Word Origin for merit

C13: via Old French from Latin meritum reward, desert, from merēre to deserve

Idioms and Phrases with merited

merit

see on its merits.

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

merit

noun

verb (used with object)

verb (used without object)

adjective

Origin of merit

SYNONYMS FOR merit

synonym study for merit

OTHER WORDS FROM merit

Words nearby merit

Example sentences from the Web for merited

British Dictionary definitions for merited

noun

verb -its, -iting or -ited

Derived forms of merit

Word Origin for merit

Idioms and Phrases with merited

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

merit

noun

verb (used with object)

verb (used without object)

adjective

Origin of merit

SYNONYMS FOR merit

synonym study for merit

OTHER WORDS FROM merit

Words nearby merit

Words related to merited

Example sentences from the Web for merited

(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []) .push({}); British Dictionary definitions for merited

noun

verb -its, -iting or -ited

Derived forms of merit

Word Origin for merit

Idioms and Phrases with merited

British Dictionary definitions for merited