Merit meaning

mĕr'ĭt
To be worthy or deserving.

Pupils are rewarded or corrected, as they merit.

verb
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To earn; deserve.
verb
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In various religions, spiritual credit granted for good works.
noun
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Demonstrated ability or achievement.

Promotions based on merit alone.

noun
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Worth; value; excellence.
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Something deserving reward, praise, or gratitude.
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A reward or honor given for superior qualities or conduct; mark, badge, etc. awarded for excellence.
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Intrinsic rightness or wrongness apart from formalities, emotional considerations, etc.

To decide a case on its merits.

noun
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To deserve; be worthy of.
verb
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The substantive elements of a claim or defense.
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The validity of a claim or defense (as in “the defense of impossibility is without merit”).
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Description of adjudication of a matter on its substantive elements, not on procedural or technical grounds.
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Something deserving positive recognition.

His reward for his merit was a check for $50.

noun
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Something worthy of a high rating.
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A claim to commendation or reward.
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The quality of deserving reward.
noun
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Reward deserved; any mark or token of excellence or approbation.

His teacher gave him ten merits.

noun
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To earn or to deserve.

Her performance merited its wild applause.

verb
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(intransitive) To be worthy or deserving.
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The definition of merit is an excellent achievement, honor, value or quality that is deserving of approval.

An example of merit is someone receiving an award for their charity work.

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An aspect of character or behavior deserving approval or disapproval.

Judging people according to their merits.

noun
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The state, fact, or quality of deserving well or, sometimes, ill; desert.
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Origin of merit

  • Middle English from Old French merite reward or punishment from Latin meritum from neuter past participle of merēre to deserve (s)mer-2 in Indo-European roots
    From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition
  • From Middle English merite, from Old French merite, from Latin meritum (“that which one deserves, just deserts; service, kindness, benefit, fault, blame, demerit, grounds, reason, worth, value, importance"), neuter of meritus, past participle of mereō (“I deserve, earn, gain, get, acquire"), akin to Ancient Greek μέρος (meros, “a part, lot, fate, destiny").
    From Wiktionary

Merit Sentence Examples

  • The merit of Bruce is that he did not despise the lesson.

  • Kutuzov's merit lay, not in any strategic maneuver of genius, as it is called, but in the fact that he alone understood the significance of what had happened.

  • Rank is nominally determined by merit, as tested by competitive examinations.

  • The relative merit of the two systems depends upon the question how we can secure the best efficiency and equity in the application of the principles thus far laid down.

  • The First Consul, on the other hand, sought to recognize and reward merit in all walks of life.

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Also Mentioned In

Words near merit in the Dictionary