I. ˈmerə̇t, usu -ə̇d.+V noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English merite, merit, from Old French merite, from Latin meritum, from neuter of meritus, past participle of merēre, merērī to earn, deserve, merit; akin to Greek meros & meris part, share, moros fate, lot, Latin mora delay — more at memory
1.
a. obsolete : reward or punishment earned or deserved : just deserts
b. : one's character regarded as the basis of his deserts : laudable or blameworthy traits or actions
opinions of his merit vary
c. : a praiseworthy quality : virtue
but originality, as it is one of the highest, is also one of the rarest, of merits — E.A.Poe
d. : worth or excellence in quality or performance : character or conduct deserving reward, honor, or esteem
she is handsome no longer, and she never had any other merit — W.M.Thackeray
composed a number of works of merit — H.E.Starr
2. : spiritual credit or stored moral surplusage regarded as earned by performance of righteous acts and as ensuring future benefits
“she has acquired merit ,” returned the lama. “Peradventure it was a nun” — Rudyard Kipling
had thereby added to a surplus of merit already enriched by what Christ had done — K.S.Latourette
3.
a. merits plural : the intrinsic rights and wrongs of a legal case as determined by matters of substance in distinction from matters of form : the strict legal rights of the parties as distinguished from considerations depending on practice or jurisdiction
the plaintiff … is entitled to have its claim decided here on its merits — T.M.Maddes
b. : legal significance, standing, or importance
the contention is without merit — E.B.Denny
Synonyms: see due , excellence
II. verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: Middle French meriter, from merite, n.
transitive verb
1. obsolete : reward , requite
2.
a. : to be worthy of or entitled or liable to : earn
merited the large sale which they obtained — E.S.Bates
the man who owned both the lump and the abdomen merited as much consideration as either — Harvey Graham
merit the penalty of expulsion — Virginia Murphy
b. : to have a claim on (divine mercy or reward)
the supernatural life which Christ merited for us — J.J.Maher
intransitive verb
1. obsolete : to gain merit : acquire favor : be entitled to reward or honor
if in my poor death fair France may merit — Francis Beaumont & John Fletcher
2. : to be or become deserving of good or ill
Synonyms: see deserve