meritorious

[ mer-i-tawr-ee-uh s, -tohr- ]

/ ˌmɛr ɪˈtɔr i əs, -ˈtoʊr- /

adjective

deserving praise, reward, esteem, etc.; praiseworthy: to receive a gift for meritorious service.

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Origin of meritorious

1375–1425; late Middle English < Latin meritōrius on hire. See merit, -tory¹, -ous

OTHER WORDS FROM meritorious

mer·i·to·ri·ous·ly, adverbmer·i·to·ri·ous·ness, nounun·mer·i·to·ri·ous, adjectiveun·mer·i·to·ri·ous·ly, adverb

un·mer·i·to·ri·ous·ness, noun

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH meritorious

meritorious meretricious

Words nearby meritorious

merit badge, merit pay, merit system, meritocracy, meritocrat, meritorious, merits, meriç, merk, merkel, merkel's corpuscle

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for meritoriously

"Peter is very silent, and most meritoriously uninterested in everything," he said to his wife.
The Vicar of Bullhampton|Anthony Trollope
In some cases that may be innocently, and, when it sends the lead at the hordes that support a tyrant, meritoriously employed.
Rural Rides|William Cobbett
What is written already, if you read, you do so meritoriously—and it's an example of bad writing, if you want one in the poems.
The Letters of Robert Browning and Elizabeth Barrett Barrett, Vol. 1 (of 2) 1845-1846|Robert Browning and Elizabeth Barrett Barrett
She was, at that very moment, meritoriously and heartily engaged in eating her breakfast.
A Rogue's Life|Wilkie Collins

And the napery, the glassware and the flowers also meritoriously performed the spectacular duties required of them.
The Voice of the City|O. Henry

British Dictionary definitions for meritoriously

meritorious

/ (ˌmɛrɪˈtɔːrɪəs) /

adjective

praiseworthy; showing merit

Derived forms of meritorious

meritoriously, adverbmeritoriousness, noun

Word Origin for meritorious

C15: from Latin meritōrius earning money

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012