merit

merit
meritedly, adv.meritless, adj.
/mer"it/, n.
1. claim to respect and praise; excellence; worth.
2. something that deserves or justifies a reward or commendation; a commendable quality, act, etc.: The book's only merit is its sincerity.
3. 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.
4. Often, merits. the state or fact of deserving; desert: to treat people according to their merits.
5. Rom. Cath. Ch. worthiness of spiritual reward, acquired by righteous acts made under the influence of grace.
6. Obs. something that is deserved, whether good or bad.
v.t.
7. to be worthy of; deserve.
v.i.
8. Chiefly Theol. to acquire merit.
adj.
9. based on merit: a merit raise of $25 a week.
[1175-1225; ME < L meritum act worthy of praise (or blame), n. use of neut. of meritus, ptp. of merere to earn]
Syn. 1. value, credit. MERIT, DESERT, WORTH refer to the quality in a person, action, or thing that entitles recognition, esp. favorable recognition. MERIT is usually the excellence that entitles to praise: a person of great merit. DESERT is the quality that entitles one to a just reward: according to her deserts. WORTH is always used in a favorable sense and signifies inherent value or goodness: The worth of your contribution is incalculable.

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Universalium. 2010.

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  • Merit — • By merit (meritum) in general is understood that property of a good work which entitles the doer to receive a reward from him in whose service the work is done Catholic Encyclopedia. Kevin Knight. 2006. Merit     Merit …   Catholic encyclopedia

  • merit — Ⅰ. merit UK US /ˈmerɪt/ noun [C or U] ► FORMAL the quality of being good and deserving to be praised or rewarded, or an advantage that something has: »Proposals will be judged strictly on merit by an external committee. »I fail to see the merit… …   Financial and business terms

  • merit — MÉRIT, merite, s.n. Calitate, însuşire remarcabilă care face pe cineva sau ceva să fie vrednic de stimă, de laudă, de răsplată; valoare, virtute. ♢ loc. adv. Pe merit = pe bună dreptate, justificat. – Din fr. mérite. Trimis de LauraGellner, 28.05 …   Dicționar Român

  • merit — mer·it / mer ət/ n 1 pl: the substance of a case apart from matters of jurisdiction, procedure, or form a ruling on the merit s of the case see also judgment on the merits at …   Law dictionary

  • Merit — Mer it, n. [F. m[ e]rite, L. meritum, fr. merere, mereri, to deserve, merit; prob. originally, to get a share; akin to Gr. ? part, ? fate, doom, ? to receive as one s portion. Cf. {Market}, {Merchant}, {Mercer}, {Mercy}.] 1. The quality or state… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Merit — Mer it, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Merited}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Meriting}.] [F. m[ e]riter, L. meritare, v. intens. fr. merere. See {Merit}, n.] 1. To earn by service or performance; to have a right to claim as reward; to deserve; sometimes, to deserve… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Merit — ist ein weiblicher Vorname. Herkunft und Bedeutung des Namens dänische/schwedische Kurzform von Margarete schweizerische Kurzform von Emerentia ägyptisch: Die Geliebte (zum Beispiel die Pharaonentöchter Meritaton = Geliebte des Aton, Meritamun =… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • merit# — merit n 1 *due, desert Analogous words: meed, reward, guerdon (see PREMIUM): worth, value: gaining or gainings, winning or winnings (see GET) 2 *excellence, virtue, perfection Antonyms: fault: defect …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • merit — [n] advantage arete, asset, benefit, caliber, credit, desert, dignity, excellence, excellency, good, goodness, honor, integrity, perfection, quality, stature, strong point, talent, value, virtue, worth, worthiness; concept 693 Ant. demerit,… …   New thesaurus

  • Merit — Mer it, v. i. To acquire desert; to gain value; to receive benefit; to profit. [Obs.] Beau. & Fl. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • merit — as a verb has inflected forms merited, meriting …   Modern English usage

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