deserve

deserve, v.
  (dɪˈzɜːv)
  Forms: 4– deserve; also 4 de-, des-, discerve, desserve, 4–6 disserve, 6 dyserve.
  [a. OF. deserv-ir, now (for sake of pronunciation) desservir:—L. dēservīre to serve zealously, well, or meritoriously, f. de- I. 3 + servīre to serve: hence, in late pop. L., to merit by service.]
  † 1. trans. To acquire or earn a rightful claim, by virtue of actions or qualities, to (something); to become entitled to or worthy of (reward or punishment, esteem or disesteem, position, designation, or any specified treatment). Obs. or arch.

[1292 Britton v. x. §5 Si ele ne puisse averrer..qe ele pout dowarie aver deservi.] c 1325 E.E. Allit. P. B. 613 Ȝyf euer þy mon vpon molde merit disserued. c 1340 Cursor M. 10350 (Trin.) Childre þat..ofte deseruen [Laud decervyn] muchel mede. c 1400 Rom. Rose 3093, I drede youre wrath to disserve. 1495 Act II Hen. VII, c. 22 §4 Artificers..waste moch part of the day and deserve not their wagis. a 1533 Ld. Berners Huon lxiii. 219 Honoure is dewe to them that dyserueth it. 1590 Shakes. Mids. N. ii. ii. 124 When at your hands did I deserue this scorne? 1713 Addison Cato i. ii, 'Tis not in mortals to Command Success, But we'll do more, Sempronius; we'll Deserve it.

  † b. Const. with inf. Obs. or arch.

c 1385 Chaucer L.G.W. Prol. 502 That hast deseruyd sorere for to smerte. c 1400 Mandeville (1839) ix. 200 Men that han disserved to ben dede.

  † c. with indirect obj. and subord. clause. Obs.

1529 More Dyaloge iv. Wks. 268/1 Nor neuer deserued we vnto him y{supt} he should so much doe for vs.

  2. To have acquired, and thus to have, a rightful claim to; to be entitled to, in return for services or meritorious actions, or sometimes for ill deeds and qualities; to be worthy to have. (Now the ordinary sense, in which to deserve is the result of having deserved in sense 1.)

[c 1400 Mandeville (Roxb.) Prol. 1 He desserued neuer nane euill; for he did neuer euill, ne thoght neuer euill.] c 1440 Promp. Parv. 120 Deservyn..be worthy to havyn (K), mereor. c 1500 New Not-br. Mayd in Anc. Poet. Tracts (Percy Soc.) 46 Mercy or grace, A fore your face, He none deserueth in dede. 1599 H. Buttes Dyets drie Dinner G v, We have many other herbes which deserve that name. 1599 Shakes. Much Ado iii. i. 45 Doth not the Gentleman Deserue as full as fortunate a bed? 1631 Shirley Love Tricks v. ii, He gave me two or three kicks, which I deserved well enough. 1651 Hobbes Leviath. ii. xxvii. 156 All Crimes doe equally deserve the name of Injustice. 1668 Lady Chaworth in 12th Rep. Hist. MSS. Comm. App. v. 10 Mr. Ho...deserves a better fate than to be ever of the loosing side. 1676 Lister in Ray's Corr. (1848) 124, I am well pleased your Catalogue of Plants is again to be printed: it certainly deserves it. 1716 Lady M. W. Montagu Lett. 10 Oct. (1887) I. 128, I deserve not all the reproaches you make me. c 1850 Arab. Nts. 546 Do you think that you deserve the favour? Mod. The subject deserves fuller treatment than can be given to it here.

fig. or transf. a 1631 Donne Lett., To Mrs. B. White (1651) 6 Not to return til towards Christmas, except the business deserve him not so long.

  b. Const. with inf.

1585 J. B. tr. Viret's Sch. Beastes A iv b, Yf the beastes do better their office..then men doe theirs, they deserve more to be called reasonable, then men. 1612 Brinsley Lud. Lit. xiii. (1627) 174 Herein many a Master deserves rather to be beaten then the scholler. 1841–4 Emerson Ess., Spir. Laws Wks. (Bohn) I. 65 Only those books come down which deserve to last. 1856 Froude Hist. Eng. (1858) I. ii. 90 The clergy had won the battle then because they deserved to win it.

  3. absol. orintr. † a. To become entitled to the fitting recompense of action, character, or qualities. b. To be so entitled; to have just claims for reward or punishment; to merit, be worthy. Often in phr. to deserve ill or well of.

c 1300 Treat. Pop. Science 140 And went wheder heo hath deserved, to joye other to pyne. a 1340 Hampole Psalter xvi. 1 Here me as my rightwisnes deserues. c 1400 Destr. Troy 12029 Ryches..To be delt to þe dughti..As þai sothly desseruyt. 1535 Coverdale Eccl. ix. 5 They y{supt} be deed, knowe nothinge, nether deserue they eny more. a 1669 Trapp in Spurgeon Treas. Dav. Ps. vii. 16 Executed at Tyburn, as he had well deserven. 1697 Dryden Virg. Georg. iv. 136 That he, who best deserves, alone may reign. 1709 Hearne Collect. (Oxf. Hist. Soc.) II. 234 He deserves well of the Publick. 1811 Genl. Floyd in Southey Life Bell (1844) II. 640 You would, indeed, to use the French phrase, ‘Deserve well of the country.’ 1840 Thackeray Paris Sk. Bk., Fr. Fashion. Novels, Deputies who had deserved well of their country. 1875 Jowett Plato (ed. 2) V. 348 Slaves ought to be punished as they deserve.

  c. in implied good sense.

1608 Middleton Trick to catch Old One i. i, Find him so officious to deserve, So ready to supply! 1752 Young Brothers iv. i, While you deserved, my passion was sincere.

  † 4. trans. To secure by service or quality of action; to earn, win. b. Const. to (= for): To earn or win for (another). Obs.

1377 Langl. P. Pl. B. xiv. 134 Selden deieth he out of dette þat dyneth ar he deserue it. 1393 Gower Conf. III. 299 He..which had his prise deserved..Was made begin a middel borde. c 1440 Gesta Rom. x. 29 (Harl. MS.) Me most euery day nedis laboure, and deserue viij pense. c 1500 Lancelot 1027 Tharfor y red hir thonk at þow disserue. 1590 Marlowe Edw. II, iv. ii, But by the sword, my lord, 't must be deserv'd.

b. 1398 Trevisa Barth. De P.R. ii. xvii. (1495) 43 And in prayenge the angel desceruyth mede to vs. c 1449 Pecock Repr. ii. xix. 266 A cros..was the instrument wher yn Crist..deserued to us al oure good. 1628 Gaule Pract. Th. (1629) 10 How..could the humane Nature of ours deserue that to vs which his own could not deserue vnto it selfe?

  † 5. To serve, do service to; to be serviceable or subservient to; to serve or treat well, to benefit. Obs.

c 1340 Cursor M. 8405 (Trin.) Þat neuer did ne disserued [Cott. seruid] vileny. 1382 Wyclif Heb. xiii. 16 By suche oostis God is disseruyd. 1501 Douglas Pal. Hon. Prol. 93 How lang sall I thus foruay Quhilk ȝow and Venus in this garth deseruis? 1625 Massinger New Way iv. ii, Of all the scum that grew rich by my riots, This..and this..have worst deserved me. 1634 ― Very Woman ii. iii, You in this Shall much deserve me.

  † b. intr. with to, for, or inf. in same sense. Obs.

c 1380 Wyclif Serm. Sel. Wks. II. 250 Loue techiþ to forȝeue hem and disserue to hem. c 1450 tr. De Imitatione iii. lv, Thou knowist..hov muche tribulacion deseruiþ to purge þe rust of my vices. c 1460 Bp. Grossetest's Househ. Stat. in Babees Bk. (1868) 330 The vessels deseruyng for ale and wyne. 1526 Pilgr. Perf. (W. de W. 1531) 109 b, For these vertues..deserueth to the gyfte of pite, and thexercyse of them disposeth..man to the perfeccyon of the same.

  † 6. trans. To give in return for service rendered; to pay back, requite. Obs.

c 1385 Chaucer L.G.W. 1624 Medea, My might, ne my labour, May nat disserve it in myn lyvys day. 1393 Gower Conf. III. 156 But other, which have nought deserved Through vertue..A king shall nought deserve grace. 1470–85 Malory Arthur ii. ix, I am moche beholdyng vnto hym, & I haue yll deserued it vnto hym for his kyndenes. 1523–5 Ld. Berners Froiss. II. 638 (R.) Whereof we shall thanke you, and deserve it to you and yours.

Oxford English Dictionary