mĕrĕo

I. to deserve, merit, to be entitled to, be worthy of a thing; constr. with acc., with ut, with ne, with inf., and absol.

I. In gen.

(a). With acc.: mereri praemia, Caes. B. G. 7, 34: laudem, id. ib. 1, 40, 5; Cic. Div. in Caecil. 18, 60: nec minimum decus, Hor. A. P. 286: amorem, Quint. 6 prooem.: favorem aut odium, id. 4, 1, 44: gratiam nullam, Liv. 45, 24, 7; Quint. 4, 9, 32: fidem, Vell. 2, 104 fin.: summum honorem, Juv. 6, 532: supplicium, id. 6, 219.—

(b). With ut: respondit, sese meruisse, ut decoraretur, Cic. de Or. 1, 54, 232.—

(g). With ne: mereri, ne quis, Plin. 35, 2, 2, § 8.—

(d). With inf.: quae merui vitio perdere cuncta meo, Ov. Tr. 5, 11, 16: credi, Quint. 10, 1, 72: sanctus haberi, Juv. 8, 25.—(ε) Absol.: dignitatem meam, si mereor, tuearis, Cic. Fam. 10, 17, 3.—In a bad sense: meruisse supplicium, Ov. M. 5, 666.—

II. In partic.

A. To earn, gain, get, obtain, acquire: quid meres? quantillo argenti te conduxit Pseudulus? Plaut. Ps. 4, 7, 95: iste, qui meret HS. vicenos, Varr. ap. Non. 4, 296: non amplius duodecim aeris, Cic. Rosc. Com. 10, 28: ne minus gratiae praecipiendo recta quam offensae reprendendo prava mereamur, Quint. 4, 2, 39: nomen patronorum, id. 6, 4, 5: indulgentiam, principis ingenio, Tac. Dial. 9 fin.: nomen gloriamque merere, id. H. 2, 37: famam, id. ib. 2, 31; id. A. 15, 6: ancillā natus diadema Quirini meruit, Juv. 8, 260: odium, Caes. B. G. 6, 5, 3: quantum quisque uno die mereret, Suet. Calig. 40 fin.: aera, Hor. A. P. 345. —With ut (rare): quem ego ut non excruciem, alterum tantum auri non meream, would not give up torturing him for, etc., Plaut. Bacch. 5, 2, 65: neque ille sibi mereat Persarum montes ... ut istuc faciat, would not do it for, etc., id. Stich. 1, 1, 24.—

B. To get by purchase, to buy, purchase: uxores, quae vos dote meruerunt, Plaut. Most. 1, 3, 124: quid arbitramini Rheginos merere velle, ut ab eis marmorea Venus illa auferatur? Cic. Verr. 2, 4, 60, § 135: gloriam, Plin. Ep. 1, 8, 13: legatum a creditore, Dig. 35, 2, 21: noxam, Petr. 139: quid Minyae meruere queri? Val. Fl. 1, 519.—

C. In milit. lang., mereri and merere stipendia, or simply merere (lit., to earn pay), to serve for pay, to serve as a soldier, serve in the army: mereri stipendia, Cic. Cael. 5, 11: meruit stipendia in eo bello, id. Mur. 5, 12: adulescens patre suo imperatore meruit, id. ib.: complures annos, Caes. B. G. 7, 17: triennio sub Hannibale, Liv. 21, 4 fin.: Romanis in castris, Tac. A. 2, 10: in Thracia, Suet. Vesp. 2: merere equo, Cic. Phil. 1, 8, 20: merere pedibus, Liv. 24, 18: mereri aere (al. equo) publico, Varr. ap. Non. 345, 2.—

D. Mereri (ante-class., merere) de aliquo, or de aliquā re, to deserve or merit any thing of one, to behave in any manner towards one, in a good or bad sense (in Plaut. also with erga): te ego, ut digna es, perdam, atque ut de me meres, Plaut. As. 1, 2, 22: ut erga me est merita, id. Am. 5, 1, 49: nam de te neque re neque verbis merui, ut faceres quod facis, id. Aul. 2, 2, 45: saepe (erga me; sc. illam) meritam quod vellem scio, Ter. Hec. 3, 5, 37.—Esp.: bene, male, optime, etc., mereri, to deserve well, ill, etc.: de mendico male meretur, qui ei dat, etc., Plaut. Trin. 2, 2, 58: de re publicā bene mereri, Cic. Fam. 10, 5, 2: de populi Romani nomine, id. Brut. 73, 254: melius de quibusdam acerbos inimicos mereri, quam eos amicos, qui dulces videantur, id. Lael. 24, 90: de re publica meruisse optime, id. Att. 10, 4, 5: perniciosius de re publicā merentur vitiosi principes, id. Leg. 3, 14, 32: stet haec urbs praeclara, quoquo modo merita de me erit, id. Mil. 34, 93: Paulus, qui nihil meruit, Lact. 2, 16, 17: ita se omni tempore de populo Romano meritos esse, ut, Caes. B. G. 1, 11: Caesarem imperatorem bene de republicā meritum, id. B. C. 1, 13: optime cum de se meritum judicabat, id. ib. 3, 99: milites mirifice de re publicā meriti, Cic. Fam. 12, 12, 3: homines de me divinitus meriti, id. Red. in Sen. 12, 30; cf.: te ego ut digna's perdam atque ut de me meres, Plaut. As. 1, 2, 22.— Hence,

1. mĕrens, entis, P. a., that deserves or merits any thing; in a good sense, deserving; in a bad sense, guilty; that has rendered himself deserving towards any one or of any thing; with de, rarely with dat.; esp. with bene, well-deserving (mostly poet. and post-class.): consul laudare, increpare merentes, Sall. J. 100: laurea decreta merenti, Ov. P. 2, 2, 91: quem periisse, ita de re publicā merentem, doleo, Cic. Fragm. ap. Non. 344, 23; so Inscr. Grut. 933, 5.— With dat.: quando tu me bene merentem tibi habes despicatui, Plaut. Men. 4, 3, 19.— In sup.: HOMINI BENE MERENTISSIMO, Inscr. Rein. cl. 16, 8; Inscr. Grut. 932, 7; ib. 1129, 3.—

2. mĕrĭtus, a, um, P. a.

a. Deserving: meriti juvenci, Verg. G. 2, 515.—Sup.: filiae meritissimae, Inscr. Rein. cl. 5, 35. —

b. Pass., deserved, due, fit, just, proper, right: ignarus, laus an poena merita esset, Liv. 8, 7: triumphus, id. 39, 4, 6: iracundiam, neque eam injustam, sed meritam ac debitam fuisse, Cic. de Or. 2, 50, 203: mors, Verg. A 4, 696: noxia, committed, perpetrated, Plaut. Trin. 1, 1, 1: meritis de causis, for merited, i. e. just reasons, Dig. 48, 20.— Sup.: famā optimā et meritissimā frui, Plin. Ep. 5, 15.—Hence,

3. mĕrĭtum, i, n.

a. That which one deserves, desert; in a good sense, reward, recompense; in a bad sense, punishment (only ante- and postclass.): nihil suave meritum est, Ter. Phorm. 2, 1, 75: specta denique, quale caelesti providentia meritum reportaverit, App. M. 8, p. 214: delictorum, Tert. Apol. 21.—

b. That by which one deserves any thing of another, a merit; esp. in a good sense, a service, kindness, benefit, favor (class.): propter eorum (militum) divinum atque immortale meritum, Cic. Phil. 3, 6, 14: pro singulari eorum merito, id. Cat. 3, 6, 15: magnitudo tuorum erga me meritorum, id. Fam. 1, 1, 1: et hercule merito tuo feci, id. Att. 5, 11, 6: pro ingentibus meritis praemia acceperant, Tac. A. 14, 53: recordatio ingentium meritorum, Liv. 39, 49, 11; Curt. 8, 3, 14; Suet. Ner. 3; Sen. Ben. 3, 8, 2.—In Plaut. also in the sup.: meritissimo ejus, quae volet faciemus, Plaut. As. 3, 3, 147: merita dare et recipere, Cic. Lael. 8, 26: magna ejus sunt in me non dico officia, sed merita, id. Fam. 11, 17, 1.—Also demerit, blame, fault: Caesar, qui a me nullo meo merito alienus esse debebat, id. Sest. 17, 39: nullo meo in se merito, Liv. 40, 15: leniter, ex merito quicquid patiare, ferendum est, Ov. H. 5, 7: ex cujusque merito scio me fecisse, Liv. 26, 31, 9: quosdam punivit, alios praemiis adfecit, neutrum ex merito, Tac. H. 4, 50; cf.: quod ob meritum nostrum succensuistis? Liv. 25, 6, 4.—

B. Transf., worth, value, importance of a thing (poet. and post-class.): quo sit merito quaeque notata dies, Ov. F. 1, 7: negotiorum, Cod. Just. 8, 5, 2: aedificia majoris meriti, of greater value, Cod. Th. 15, 1, 30: loci, Mart. 8, 65, 7: primi saporis mella thymi sucus effundit, secundi meriti thymbra, tertii meriti rosmarinus, Pall. 1, 37, 3.—

4. mĕrĭtō, adv., according to desert, deservedly, justly, often connected with jure (class.): quamquam merito sum iratus Metello, Cic. Verr. 2, 3, 68, § 158: merito ac jure laudantur, id. Cat. 3, 6, 14; cf.: te ipse jure optimo, merito incuses, licet, Plaut. Most. 3, 2, 23: recte ac merito commovebamur, Cic. Verr. 2, 5, 67, § 172: merito jam suspectus, Juv. 3, 221; 10, 208. —Sup.: meritissimo te magni facio, Turp. ap. Non. 139, 17; Caecil. ib. 18: me deridere meritissumo, Plaut. Ep. 3, 3, 49; Cic. de Or. 1, 55, 234; S. C. ap. Plin. Ep. 8, 6, 6; ap. Flor. 1, 9.—Post-class.: meritissime, Sol. 7, 18.—

b. In partic.: libens (lubens) merito, a form of expression used in paying vows; v. libens, under libet.