meritare

to deserve

verb meh-ree-TAH-reh Less Common

Origin: Latin meritare, frequentative of mereri, 'to earn'

Also means

to merit

Usage Note

Meritare takes avere as its auxiliary and can be used both personally (lui merita una risposta — he deserves an answer) and impersonally (merita visitarla — it is worth visiting). The phrase non ne vale la pena is an alternative for 'not worth it', while meritarsi (reflexive) stresses that one has truly earned something — se l'è meritato (he really deserved it).

Examples

"Lui merita rispetto per il suo lavoro."

Natural Translation

He deserves respect for his work.

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