Word of the Day.

deserve  

 

Function: verb [with object]

Inflected forms:
deserves; deserved; deserving

Meaning:
Deserve is used to say that someone or something should or should not have or be given something.
Examples:
<She deserves another chance.>
<He doesn't deserve the award.>
<Every defendant deserves a fair trial.>
<I think the idea deserves [=merits] consideration.>
<The story deserves telling. [=the story should be told; the story is important enough to tell]>
<What did I do to deserve this kind of harsh treatment? [=you should not treat me this way]>
<She believes that people eventually get what they deserve.>
<He deserves a medal for coming up with a solution so quickly. [=he did something very good and impressive by coming up with a solution so quickly]>

Note: Deserve is often followed by to + verb.
Examples:
<They deserve to be punished.>
<He deserves to win.>

Derived forms:
deserved adjective
Examples:
<a well-deserved vacation/break>
<a deserved win/victory/reputation>
<The award/criticism was not deserved.>

deservedly adverb
Examples:
<She was deservedly praised for her generosity.>
<He has been accused of being selfish, and deservedly so. [=he deserves to be called selfish; it is reasonable to call him selfish because of his behavior]>