as in weaknesses
a defect in character
my keyboarding has the advantage of speed but the demerit of inaccuracy
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Recent Examples of demerits
Restaurants that receive more than 30 demerits are required to fix the worst violations immediately and clean up the rest within 48 hours.
—
Harriet Ramos, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 2 Feb. 2026
As a do-it-all shoe, however, the SL Evo has two major demerits.
—Scott Douglas, Outside, 12 Nov. 2025
Harriet Ramos, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 2 Feb. 2026
As a do-it-all shoe, however, the SL Evo has two major demerits.
—Scott Douglas, Outside, 12 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for demerits
Noun
-
If your goal is to get at the truth, or at least our closest approximation of it at the present time, the way to do that is to be scrupulous and forthright about the strengths and weaknesses of every link in your chain of argument.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
10 Feb. 2026
-
Per-room prices for hotel purchases fell in California primarily due to weaknesses in the Bay Area market, Atlas Hospitality Group reported in its annual survey of hotel sales activity.—
George Avalos,
Mercury News,
10 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
These mini-seismic events are not considered true earthquakes because there is no movement along faults or tectonic plate boundaries.—
Tammie Souza,
CBS News,
7 Feb. 2026
-
When the tectonic plates began to pull apart millions of years later, those ancient faults at their edges reawakened, reincarnated as transform faults.—
Evan Howell,
Scientific American,
4 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Most of the revelations in the files have not revealed journalistic sins, but have highlighted uncomfortably close relationships with New York media figures and a man who had been convicted of soliciting a minor.—
Max Tani,
semafor.com,
9 Feb. 2026
-
Yasmin, meanwhile, is still haunted by the sins of her father—a figure reminiscent of Robert Maxwell—yet seemingly doomed to enable the same kinds of offenses.—
Inkoo Kang,
New Yorker,
9 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Ultimately, Richardson would acknowledge the film’s shortcomings in his book.—
Alexander Nazaryan,
New Yorker,
10 Feb. 2026
-
Veterans have often been some of the harshest (and most clear-eyed) analysts of the military’s shortcomings.—
Missy Ryan,
The Atlantic,
9 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Demerits.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/demerits. Accessed 15 Feb. 2026.
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