Meristem, mer′is-tem, n. the formative tissue of plants, distinguished from the permanent tissues by the power its cells have of dividing and forming new cells.—adj. Meristemat′ic. [Gr. meristos, verbal adj. of merizein, to divide—meros, a part.]
Merit, mer′it, n. excellence that deserves honour or reward: worth: value: that which one has earned.—v.t. to earn: to have a right to claim as a reward: to deserve: (pl., in law) the right or wrong of a case, apart from questions of procedure.—adj. Meritō′rious, possessing merit or desert: deserving of reward, honour, or praise.—adv. Meritō′riously.—n. Meritō′riousness.—Order for merit, a Prussian order, the military class founded by Frederick the Great in 1740—the civil class, by Frederick William IV. in 1842 for eminence in science and art; Order of merit, place in a class or list in which the best is placed first, the next best second, and so on. [Fr.,—L. meritum—merēre, -ĭtum, to obtain as a lot, to deserve.]
Merk, mėrk, n. an old Scotch silver coin, worth 13s. 4d. Scots, or 13⅓d. sterling. [Mark.]
Merle, mėrl, n. the blackbird. [Fr.,—L. merula.]
Merlin, mėr′lin, n. a species of small hawk. [Fr. émerillon, prob. from L. merula.]
Merling, mer′ling, n. a small gadoid fish, the whiting.
Merlon, mėr′lon, n. (fort.) the part of a wall with battlements which lies between two openings. [Fr., prob. through Low L. forms from L. murus, a wall.]
Mermaid, mėr′mād, n. a sea-woman, having the head and body of a lovely woman to the waist, ending in the tail of a fish.—ns. Mer′maiden (Tenn.):—masc. Mer′man; Mer′maid's-glove, the largest kind of British sponge. [A.S. mere, a lake (influenced by Fr. mer, the sea), mægden, maid.]
Meroblast, mer′ō-blast, n. a meroblastic ovum.—adj. Meroblast′ic, undergoing segmentation only in the germinal disc, as the eggs of birds.
Merognostic, mer-og-nos′tik, n. one who claims to know in part.—n. Merognos′ticism.