merit
verb/ˈmerɪt/
/ˈmerɪt/
not used in the progressive tenses (formal)Verb Forms
| present simple I / you / we / they merit | /ˈmerɪt/ /ˈmerɪt/ |
| he / she / it merits | /ˈmerɪts/ /ˈmerɪts/ |
| past simple merited | /ˈmerɪtɪd/ /ˈmerɪtɪd/ |
| past participle merited | /ˈmerɪtɪd/ /ˈmerɪtɪd/ |
| past simple meriting | /ˈmerɪtɪŋ/ /ˈmerɪtɪŋ/ |
| past participle meriting | /ˈmerɪtɪŋ/ /ˈmerɪtɪŋ/ |
- merit (doing) something to deserve praise, attention, etc. synonym deserve
- He claims that their success was not merited.
- The case does not merit further investigation.
Extra Examples- The question hardly merits an answer.
- His discussion paper merits further consideration.
- Their efforts merit recognition.
- This problem merits expert advice.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb- certainly
- clearly
- barely
- …
Word OriginMiddle English (originally in the sense ‘deserved reward or punishment’): via Old French from Latin meritum ‘due reward’, from mereri ‘earn, deserve’.Definitions on the go
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