demerit
noun · verb
Simple meaning
Being inadequate or falling short of perfection.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
deemehruhtSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
diˈmɛɹət
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
The quality of being inadequate or falling short of perfection
“They discussed the merits and demerits of her novel.”
A mark against a person for misconduct or failure; usually given in school or armed forces
“Ten demerits and he loses his privileges.”
A quality of being inadequate; a disadvantage, a fault.
A mark given for bad conduct to a person attending an educational institution or serving in the army.
That which one merits or deserves, either of good or ill; desert.
verb
To deserve.
To depreciate or cry down.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- C2 · Proficient (estimated)
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: The quality of being inadequate or falling short of perfection
Used this way, demerit is a common word with a clearly unfavourable pull. It criticises, but without shouting.
“They discussed the merits and demerits of her novel.”
- Emotional tone
- Negative
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Gentle
- How common
- Common
- Connotation
- Serious and weighty
- Usage feel
- Critical but measured
Usage note
It most often appears in the pattern “demerit of …”, which is worth copying when you use it.
Natural pattern: demerit of …
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
How It’s Used
The word’s distinct uses, one example each.
Inadequatenoun
“They discussed the merits and demerits of her novel.”
Marknoun
“Ten demerits and he loses his privileges.”
More ways to use demerit
- “They discussed the merits and demerits of her novel.”noun
- “Ten demerits and he loses his privileges.”noun
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin
Antonyms
Sense: to deserve
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.