Lewis & Short

Parsing inflected forms may not always work as expected. If the following does not give the correct word, try Latin Words or Perseus.

prō-mĕrĕo, ŭi, ĭtum, 2, v. a., and prō-mĕrĕor, ĭtus, 2, v. dep. a.

  1. I. To deserve, be deserving of, merit, in a good or bad sense (class.)
    1. A. In gen.: retineri nequeo, quin dicam ea, quae promeres, Plaut. Trin. 3, 2, 15; id. Am. 5, 2, 12: quid mali sum promeritus, id. ib. 2, 1, 20: ita velim me promerentem ames, Ter. Ad. 4, 5, 47: reus levius punitus quam sit ille promeritus, Cic. Inv 2, 28, 83: poenam, Ov. Tr. 1, 2, 63.
      In a good sense: promeruisti, ut ne quid ores, quin impetres, Plaut. Men. 5, 9, 41: promerenti optime hoccine pretii redditur, id. As. 1, 2, 2; deorum indulgentiam, Plin. Pan. 74, 5: amorem, Suet. Calig. 3: omnium voluntatem, id. Tit. 1 dies qui primus videre Promeruit nasci mundum, Sedul. 5, 318.
    2. B. Esp., to deserve of one any thing (good or bad); constr. usu. with de or absol., rarely with acc.: numquam referre gratiam possum satis, proinde ut tu promeritus de me, Plaut. Capt. 5, 1, 12: paratiores erunt ad bene de multis promerendum, Cic. Off 2, 15, 53.
  2. II. Transf., to acquire, gain, earn, get, win homines tenues unum habent in nostrum ordinem aut promerendi aut proferendi beneficii losum, Cic. Mur. 34, 70 socios, Suet. Aug. 3: principem, Plin. Pan. 62: ego te numquam negabo Promeritam, Verg. A. 4, 335: per hostias deos laevos, i. e. to render favorable, to propitiate, Arn. 7, 229; cf. pass.: talibus enim hostiis promeretur Deus, is won, conciliated, Vulg. Heb. 13, 6.
    Hence, prō-mĕrĭtum, i, n, desert (good or evil), merit.
    In good sense, Pac. ap. Non. 307, 10 (Trag. Rel. p. 79 Rib.); Lucr 2, 651; Cic. Red. ad Quir. 4, 8; Ov. F 4, 394.
    In bad sense, Plaut. Trin. 5, 2, 49; Auct. B. Afr. 90.