Meritocracy
/mɛɹəˈtɑkɹəsi/ noun
noun ·Uncommon ·Advanced level
Definitions
Noun
- 1 Rule by merit and talent. countable, uncountable
"As a small nation without natural resources, Singapore relies on education and meritocracy to develop its economy."
- 2 the belief that rulers should be chosen for their superior abilities and not because of their wealth or birth wordnet
- 3 A type of society where wealth, income, and social status are assigned through competition. countable, uncountable
- 4 a form of social system in which power goes to those with superior intellects wordnet
Example
More examples"If such a thing as meritocracy existed, it would be gone within a generation."
Etymology
From merit + -o- + -cracy, coined by British sociologist Alan Fox in 1956 in an article in Socialist Commentary from May 1956, used as a derisive term, and popularized by British sociologist Michael Young, Baron Young of Dartington in his 1958 book The Rise of the Meritocracy.