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ITALIAN VERB

meritare

to deserve

  • #328 most used
  • Regular -are verb
  • Past participle: meritato
  • Gerund: meritando

Conjugation

Tap any form to hear it. The part that changes is in colour.

Present

Presente · now, habits and facts

  1. io I deserve
  2. tu you deserve
  3. lui, lei, Lei he/she deserves
  4. noi we deserve
  5. voi you all deserve
  6. loro they deserve

Past

Passato prossimo · finished actions: “ho parlato”

  1. io I deserved
  2. tu you deserved
  3. lui, lei, Lei he/she deserved
  4. noi we deserved
  5. voi you all deserved
  6. loro they deserved

Imperfect

Imperfetto · “used to” and “was …ing”

  1. io I used to deserve
  2. tu you used to deserve
  3. lui, lei, Lei he/she used to deserve
  4. noi we used to deserve
  5. voi you all used to deserve
  6. loro they used to deserve

Future

Futuro semplice · plans and guesses

  1. io I will deserve
  2. tu you will deserve
  3. lui, lei, Lei he/she will deserve
  4. noi we will deserve
  5. voi you all will deserve
  6. loro they will deserve

Conditional

Condizionale · “would”, polite requests

  1. io I would deserve
  2. tu you would deserve
  3. lui, lei, Lei he/she would deserve
  4. noi we would deserve
  5. voi you all would deserve
  6. loro they would deserve

Present subjunctive

Congiuntivo presente · wishes, doubts, “che …”

  1. io (that) I deserve
  2. tu (that) you deserve
  3. lui, lei, Lei (that) he/she deserve
  4. noi (that) we deserve
  5. voi (that) you all deserve
  6. loro (that) they deserve

Imperative

Imperativo · requests and orders: tu, Lei, noi, voi

  1. tu deserve!
  2. Lei deserve! (formal)
  3. noi deserve! (let’s)
  4. voi deserve! (all of you)

How to use meritare

One sentence for each tense, the way people say it.

  1. Present

    Meriti una vacanza dopo quest'anno.

    You deserve a holiday after this year.

  2. Past

    Ha meritato quel premio, ha lavorato tanto.

    She deserved that prize, she worked so hard.

  3. Imperfect

    Quel film non meritava tutti quei soldi.

    That film didn't deserve all that money.

  4. Future

    Dopo l'esame meriterai una bella cena.

    After the exam you'll deserve a nice dinner.

  5. Conditional

    Meriterebbe uno stipendio più alto.

    He'd deserve a higher salary.

  6. Present subjunctive

    Non credo che meriti tutta questa attenzione.

    I don't think it deserves all this attention.

  7. Imperative

    Merita la fiducia che ti danno.

    Earn the trust they give you.

Good to know

  • Meritare takes no preposition: meriti una vacanza. Meritarsi is the same, a bit warmer: te lo meriti!

Where you hear meritare

The lessons that teach a form of it, and how they say it.

Italian · Advanced Level 1

  • Te lo meriti, Laura. You deserve it, Laura.
  • Si è meritata questa casa. She has deserved this house.
  • Ti meriterai una vacanza, dopo. You'll deserve a holiday, afterwards.

Italian · Fluency Level 3

  • Te lo meriti, Laura. You deserve it, Laura.
  • Si è meritata questa casa. She has deserved this house.
  • Ti meriterai una vacanza, dopo. You'll deserve a holiday, afterwards.
26
The Signing Day

Advanced Level 1 · Prima tu, Laura. Te lo meriti.

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The Mayor's Honour

Fluency Level 3 · Cittadina onoraria? Io? Non me lo merito. · Te lo meriti, Nonna. Eccome.

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Verbs like this one

The same pattern, on other verbs: regular -are verb.