meritorious
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of meritorious
First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English, from Latin meritōrius “earning money, for hire, on hire,” from meritus, past participle of merēre, merērī “to receive one's share, be entitled to, deserve, merit.” See merit, -ory 1, -ous
Explanation
Anything that's deserving of praise or a reward could be described as meritorious. Meritorious things deserve a lot of merit, usually because they were very brave or noble in some way. If you saved a person from drowning, that's meritorious. Firefighters and doctors have meritorious careers because they're dedicated to helping people. Giving money to charity is meritorious. When something is meritorious, it deserves praise and thanks.
Vocabulary lists containing meritorious
Just Mercy
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Drums, Girls, and Dangerous Pie
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"The Blessings of Liberty and Education" by Frederick Douglass
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
And surely many would-be claimants, seeing the billboard circus, conclude the legal system is a racket and opt out altogether, even when they have meritorious claims.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 30, 2026
Presidential Medals of Freedom are awarded to people who have made "exceptionally meritorious contributions to the nation's prosperity, values, or security, world peace, or other significant public or private endeavours".
From BBC ● Sep. 1, 2025
“The NCAA’s anticompetitive conduct, coupled with its unreasonable denial of Wingfield’s meritorious request for a waiver, thus threatens him with immediate irreparable harm.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2025
"It's beautiful to know the same peptide can achieve so many meritorious health effects, that in combination have the potential to help both human and animal patients," said Unniappan.
From Science Daily ● May 28, 2024
Her sister Emily Winston received a citation from President Roosevelt, thanking her for more than one thousand hours of meritorious service as a nurse’s aide during the war.
From "Hidden Figures" by Margot Lee Shetterly
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
