just deserts
1
7.7
- noun
- /dʒʌst dɪˈzɜrts/
:
lo que se merece
- After years of hard work, she finally received her just deserts in the form of a promotion.
- get their just deserts
Examples
-
The jerks are getting their just deserts.
Blog text (14) -
How could she know, poor baby, that her hurts had punished me far past her just deserts?
Fiction book (1995) -
We all got our just deserts.
-
I'll make sure everyone gets their just deserts.
-
Let's all just do our job, and we will be rewarded according to our just deserts.
-
Anything further you'd like to say to the Court before we send you to your just deserts?
-
God is just; he metes out just deserts.
Academic text (1998) -
As I see it, this is just deserts for not controlling federal-level spending in the first place.
Blog text (7) -
But Sakatumbo didn't want to talk about history or the wicked getting their just deserts or God's sense of justice.
Fiction book (2002) -
You will get your just deserts, and I don't mean the fattening ones even though you've obviously been stuffing yourself with sweets and liquor.
Blog text (30)
Synonyms
17
8.4
What someone should receive because of their actions, for example a reward or punishment
13
6.7
To receive punishment or bad results for doing wrong
11
9.1
A punishment someone deserves for bad actions
A punishment someone gets because of a wrong they did
Antonyms
How Deserved
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly compositional: 'just' (fair/merited) modifies 'deserts' (what one deserves), so the phrase literally denotes the reward or punishment one rightly deserves. If a B1 learner knows both constituent senses they can derive the MWE meaning, although the plural form 'deserts' is somewhat archaic and may confuse learners who only know 'desert' (sandy place).
Etymology
The phrase just deserts comes from the old meaning of deserts, which was 'what someone deserves', and just meant 'fair'. Imagine a judge handing out each person's deserts — a fair reward or punishment — so just deserts means the punishment or reward someone rightly gets.