Rhymes for MERITS

• musteline mammal of prairie regions of United States; nearly extinct

• domesticated albino variety of the European polecat bred for hunting rats and rabbits

• hound or harry relentlessly

• hunt with ferrets

• search and discover through persistent investigation

• a unit of weight for precious stones = 200 mg

• the unit of measurement for the proportion of gold in an alloy; 18-karat gold is 75% gold; 24-karat gold is pure gold

• usually brightly colored zygodactyl tropical birds with short hooked beaks and the ability to mimic sounds

• a copycat who does not understand the words or acts being imitated

• repeat mindlessly

• a cap with no brim or bill; made of soft cloth

• deep orange edible root of the cultivated carrot plant

• perennial plant widely cultivated as an annual in many varieties for its long conical orange edible roots; temperate and tropical regions

• orange root; important source of carotene

• promise of reward as in "carrot and stick"

• floor consisting of open space at the top of a house just below roof; often used for storage

• an alcoholic beverage that is distilled rather than fermented

• prevent deliberately (as by making a will) from inheriting

• a term formerly used to refer to the simple past tense

• the branch of engineering that deals with the use of computers and telecommunications to retrieve and store and transmit information

• a written account of what transpired at a meeting

• an armed thief who is (usually) a member of a band

• the excess of revenues over outlays in a given period of time (including depreciation and other non-cash expenses)

• something won (especially money)

• able to read and write

• versed in literature; dealing with literature

• a person who can read and write

• knowledgeable and educated in one or several fields

• a word picture of a person's appearance and character

• any likeness of a person, in any medium

• a list of acknowledgements of those who contributed to the creation of a film (usually run at the end of the film)

• a mark against a person for misconduct or failure; usually given in school or armed forces

• the quality of being inadequate or falling short of perfection

• one retired from society for religious reasons

• one who lives in solitude

• a ceremonial dinner party for many people

• a meal that is well prepared and greatly enjoyed

• provide a feast or banquet for

• partake in a feast or banquet

• make sense of; assign a meaning to

• give an interpretation or explanation to

• give an interpretation or rendition of

• create an image or likeness of

• restate (words) from one language into another language

• make sense of a language

• the second of three divisions of the Hebrew Scriptures

• pitcher plant of southeastern United States having erect yellow trumpet-shaped pitchers with wide mouths and erect lids

• something regarded with special favor or liking

• a special loved one

• a competitor thought likely to win

• appealing to the general public

• preferred above all others and treated with partiality

• To mark an item as a personal favorite on social media

• a loud and disturbing noise

• an illegal enterprise (such as extortion or fraud or drug peddling or prostitution) carried on for profit

• the auditory experience of sound that lacks musical quality; sound that is a disagreeable auditory experience

• a sports implement (usually consisting of a handle and an oval frame with a tightly interlaced network of strings) used to strike a ball (or shuttlecock) in various games

• celebrate noisily, often indulging in drinking; engage in uproarious festivities

• make loud and annoying noises

• hit (a ball) with a racket

• childhood disease caused by deficiency of vitamin D and sunlight associated with impaired metabolism of calcium and phosphorus

• an insignificant sum of money; a trifling amount

• someone who perpetrates wrongdoing

• a number that identifies a position relative to an axis

• of equal importance, rank, or degree

• bring order and organization to

• bring into common action, movement, or condition

• be co-ordinated

• bring (components or parts) into proper or desirable coordination correlation

• someone who uses another person's words or ideas as if they were his own

• someone who robs at sea or plunders the land from the sea without having a commission from any sovereign nation

• a ship that is manned by pirates

• copy illegally; of published material

• take arbitrarily or by force

• enthusiastic approval

• something that should remain hidden from others (especially information that is not to be passed on)

• information known only to a special group

• something that baffles understanding and cannot be explained

• not open or public; kept private or not revealed

• conducted with or marked by hidden aims or methods

• not openly made known

• communicated covertly

• not expressed

• designed to elude detection

• hidden from general view or use

• (of information) given in confidence or in secret

• indulging only covertly

• having an import not apparent to the senses nor obvious to the intelligence; beyond ordinary understanding

• the next to highest level of official classification for documents

• a Nazi concentration camp for Jews in southwestern Poland during World War II

• a sock that reaches just above the ankle

• external sex organ

• a person who has received a degree from a school (high school or college or university)

• a measuring instrument for measuring fluid volume; a glass container (cup or cylinder or flask) whose sides are marked with or divided into amounts

• of or relating to studies beyond a bachelor's degree

• receive an academic degree upon completion of one's studies; completion of a course or training

• confer an academic degree upon

• make fine adjustments or divide into marked intervals for optimal measuring

• an inspection of the accounting procedures and records by a trained accountant or CPA

• a methodical examination or review of a condition or situation

• examine carefully for accuracy with the intent of verification

• attend academic courses without getting credit

• an accounting entry acknowledging sums that are owing

• enter as debit

• one of the elements that collectively form a system of numeration

• the length of breadth of a finger used as a linear measure

• a finger or toe in human beings or corresponding body part in other vertebrates

• the state of being held in low esteem

• cause to be distrusted or disbelieved

• damage the reputation of

• reject as false; refuse to accept

• prepare for publication or presentation by correcting, revising, or adapting

• supervise the publication of

• cut and assemble the components of

• cut or eliminate

• an opening remark intended to secure an advantage for the speaker

• a maneuver in a game or conversation

• a chess move early in the game in which the player sacrifices minor pieces in order to obtain an advantageous position

• an established custom

• (psychology) an automatic pattern of behavior in reaction to a specific situation; may be inherited or acquired through frequent repetition

• a distinctive attire worn by a member of a religious order

• the general form or mode of growth (especially of a plant or crystal)

• attire that is typically worn by a horseback rider (especially a woman's attire)

• excessive use of drugs

• put a habit on

• the greatest possible degree of something

• final or latest limiting point

• as far as something can go

• the boundary of a specific area

• the mathematical value toward which a function goes as the independent variable approaches infinity

• the greatest amount of something that is possible or allowed

• place limits on (extent or amount or access)

• restrict or confine within limits

• decide upon or fix definitely