I.
noun
ADJECTIVE
▪ considerable , exceptional , great , outstanding
▪ actual , real , true
▪
a lawsuit that lacked any real ~
▪ intrinsic
▪ obvious
▪ comparative , relative
▪
We need to consider the relative ~s of both makes of dishwasher.
▪ dubious , questionable
▪ individual
▪
Each case should be judged on its individual ~s.
▪ personal
▪
She was elected on personal ~.
▪ academic , aesthetic , architectural , artistic , intellectual , legal , literary , musical , scientific , technical
▪
The movie has no artistic ~ whatsoever.
VERB + MERIT
▪ have
▪ argue , assess , compare , consider , debate , determine , discuss , evaluate , examine , judge , weigh ( esp. BrE ), weigh up ( esp. BrE )
▪
We need to assess the ~s of both proposals before making our decision.
▪ question
▪
I began to question the ~s of these new technologies.
▪ lack
▪
The play lacked artistic ~.
▪ prove
▪
She proved her ~ as a serious actress.
▪ acknowledge , appreciate , recognize , see
▪
She saw the ~ in this arrangement.
▪ find
▪
I find no ~ at all in any of the arguments.
MERIT + NOUN
▪ award
▪
She received a ~ award for outstanding work.
▪ badge
▪ pay ( AmE )
▪ increase , raise (both AmE )
▪
decisions on ~ raises and promotions
▪ scholarship ( AmE )
▪ system ( esp. AmE )
▪
Other schools already have ~ systems in place that reward good work.
PREPOSITION
▪ according to ~
▪
Movies are given a rating of one to five stars according to ~.
▪ on ~
▪
Prizes are awarded entirely on ~.
▪ ~ in
▪
There is some ~ in his argument.
▪ ~ to
▪
There is lots of ~ to the idea.
PHRASES
▪ no ~ in sth/doing sth
▪
I can see no ~ in excluding the child from school.
▪
I found no artistic ~ in this film.
▪ order of ~ ( BrE )
▪
The winners are ranked in order of ~.
II.
verb
ADVERB
▪ certainly , clearly
▪ barely , hardly
▪
The question hardly ~s an answer.
Merit is used with these nouns as the object: ↑ attention , ↑ consideration , ↑ discussion , ↑ explanation , ↑ inclusion , ↑ investigation , ↑ mention , ↑ recognition