meritorious

 
Pronunciation: /ˌmɛrɪˈtɔːrɪəs/

adjective

  • deserving reward or praise: a medal for meritorious conduct
  • Law, chiefly North American (of an action or claim) likely to succeed on the merits of the case: the costs involved in civil litigation may prevent a meritorious appeal

Derivatives

meritoriously

adverb

meritoriousness

noun

Origin:

late Middle English (in the sense 'entitling a person to reward'): from late Latin meritorius (from merit- 'earned', from the verb mereri) + -ous