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Deserved vs Deserving - What's the difference?

deserved | deserving |

As verbs the difference between deserved and deserving

is that deserved is past tense of deserve while deserving is present participle of lang=en.

As an adjective deserving is

worthy of reward or praise; meritorious.

As a noun deserving is

desert, merit.

deserved

English

Verb

(head)
  • (deserve)

  • deserve

    English

    Verb

  • To be entitled to, as a result of past actions; to be worthy to have.
  • :After playing so well, the team really deserved their win .
  • :After what he did, he deserved to go to prison .
  • :This argument deserves a closer examination.
  • *Bible, Job xi. 6
  • *:God exacteth of thee less than thine iniquity deserveth .
  • *Thackeray
  • *:John Gay deserved to be a favourite.
  • (obsolete) To earn, win.
  • *1590 , Edmund Spenser, The Faerie Queene , III.vii:
  • *:That gentle Lady, whom I loue and serue, / After long suit and weary seruicis, / Did aske me, how I could her loue deserue , / And how she might be sure, that I would neuer swerue.
  • (obsolete) To reward, to give in return for service.
  • *:
  • *:Gramercy saide the kynge / & I lyue sir Lambegus I shal deserue hit / And thenne sir Lambegus armed hym / and rode after as fast as he myghte
  • (obsolete) To serve; to treat; to benefit.
  • *Massinger
  • *:A man that hath / So well deserved me.
  • Synonyms

    * merit * See also

    Usage notes

    * This is a catenative verb that takes the to infinitive . See

    Anagrams

    *

    deserving

    English

    Adjective

    (en adjective)
  • worthy of reward or praise; meritorious
  • the deserving poor
  • meriting, worthy (reward, punishment etc.)
  • Antonyms

    * undeserving

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • desert, merit
  • * Jonathan Swift
  • A person of great deservings from the republic.

    Verb

    (head)