The Subjunctive Mood of Merecer is used to express desires, doubts, or hypothetical situations, for example: Espero que tú merezcas el premio. (I hope you deserve the prize.)

Merecer is a spelling-changing verb that changes the ‘c’ to ‘zc’ before the vowels ‘a’ and ‘o’ in certain conjugations.

Conjugations

Conjugations of Merecer (to deserve) in the Subjunctive Mood tense (Latin American Spanish):

The present subjunctive of merecer is used to express desires, doubts, emotions, and hypothetical situations.

To deserve or merit something: For example, Espero que merezcas el ascenso. (I hope you deserve the promotion.)

To be worthy of something: For example, No merece tu confianza. (He doesn’t deserve your trust.)

To be deserving of punishment or reward: For example, Merece un castigo por su comportamiento. (He deserves punishment for his behavior.)

Colloquially, to really need or want something: For example, Merezco unas vacaciones. (I really need/want a vacation.)

Examples

Examples of Merecer in the Subjunctive Mood

Espero que mi hijo merezca una beca para la universidad. (I hope my son deserves a scholarship for university.)

Es importante que todos merezcamos el respeto de los demás. (It’s important that we all deserve the respect of others.)

Ojalá que ustedes merezcan un aumento de sueldo por su arduo trabajo. (I hope you deserve a raise for your hard work.)

Para que merezcas un premio, debes esforzarte al máximo. (In order for you to deserve a prize, you must give your best effort.)

Aunque no lo creas, es posible que merezca ganar la lotería algún día. (Even if you don’t believe it, it’s possible that I deserve to win the lottery one day.)

El jefe dijo que si merecemos un bono, nos lo dará. (The boss said that if we deserve a bonus, he’ll give it to us.)

Ojalá que los atletas merezcan las medallas que ganen. (I hope the athletes deserve the medals they win.)

Aunque estudies mucho, no significa que merezcas la mejor nota. (Even if you study a lot, it doesn’t mean you deserve the best grade.)

Es necesario que merezcamos la confianza de nuestros clientes. (It’s necessary that we deserve the trust of our clients.)

Para que una empresa merezca mi lealtad, debe tratarme bien. (For a company to deserve my loyalty, it must treat me well.)

Ojalá que ustedes merezcan mucha felicidad en sus vidas. (I hope you deserve a lot of happiness in your lives.)

Es fundamental que todos merezcamos las mismas oportunidades. (It’s essential that we all deserve the same opportunities.)

Conjugations with English Translations

Conjugations of Merecer (to deserve) in the Subjunctive Mood tense (Latin American Spanish) with English Translations:

This post covers Latin American Spanish. For Castilian Spanish, click here

Synonyms

The Subjunctive mood is also known as the Simple Subjunctive, Subjunctive Present, or Present Subjunctive Mood in English, and as Presente de Subjuntivo, Subjuntivo Presente, Presente del Modo Subjuntivo, or Tiempo Presente del Subjuntivo in Spanish.