de·serv·ing
di-ˈzər-viŋ 
: deserved reward or punishment : merit
… reward the proud according to their deservings!—
Charles Kingsley
Charles Kingsley1
: having good qualities that deserve praise, support, etc. : meritorious, worthy
rewarding deserving workers
scholarships for deserving students
2
: appropriately having or being given something specified
—used with of
a proposal deserving of support [=a proposal that deserves support]
a criminal deserving of punishment
deservingly
adverb
deservingness
noun
Examples of deserving in a Sentence
Adjective
He's a very deserving young man.
The church provides aid to deserving families.
Recent Examples on the Web
Trevor Jackson, The New York Review of Books, 4 Apr. 2026
Teyana Taylor’s dress Fresh off her Golden Globe win and Oscar nomination, Atlanta resident Teyana Taylor hit the Grammy stage with a skin-tight dress deserving of its own award.
—Deasia Paige, AJC.com, 2 Feb. 2026
Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 20 Apr. 2026
To be clear, Gilgeous-Alexander is quite deserving.
—Chris Branch, New York Times, 10 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for deserving
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Noun
The Eagles had in mind city-dwelling male breadwinners and excluded household and domestic work from their vision of who was among the deserving.
—Trevor Jackson, The New York Review of Books, 4 Apr. 2026
Teyana Taylor’s dress Fresh off her Golden Globe win and Oscar nomination, Atlanta resident Teyana Taylor hit the Grammy stage with a skin-tight dress deserving of its own award.
—Deasia Paige, AJC.com, 2 Feb. 2026
Adjective
All of which guests can explore on foot, bike, or horseback, before taking the weight off at the Susanne Kaufmann spa and sampling the wares of the on-site winery under twinkling skies fully deserving of their designation as a Dark Sky Reserve.
—Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 20 Apr. 2026
To be clear, Gilgeous-Alexander is quite deserving.
—Chris Branch, New York Times, 10 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for deserving
Cite this Entry
“Deserving.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/deserving. Accessed 24 Apr. 2026.
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