The difference between Earn and Merit
When used as verbs, earn means to gain (success, reward, recognition) through applied effort or work, whereas merit means to deserve, to earn.
Merit is also noun with the meaning: a claim to commendation or a reward.
check bellow for the other definitions of Earn and Merit
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Earn as a verb (transitive):
To gain (success, reward, recognition) through applied effort or work.
Examples:
"You can have the s'mores: you earned them, clearing the walkway of snow so well."
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Earn as a verb (transitive):
To receive payment for work.
Examples:
"He earns seven million dollars a year as CEO.  My bank account is only earning one percent interest."
"rfex en"
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Earn as a verb (intransitive):
To receive payment for work.
Examples:
"Now that you are earning, you can start paying me rent."
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Earn as a verb (transitive):
To cause (someone) to receive payment or reward.
Examples:
"My CD earns me six percent!"
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Earn as a verb (transitive):
To achieve by being worthy of.
Examples:
"to earn a spot in the top 20"
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Earn as a verb (UK, dialect, dated):
To curdle, as milk.
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Earn as a verb (obsolete):
To long; to yearn.
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Earn as a verb (obsolete):
To grieve.
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Earn as a noun:
Examples:
"rfquotek Sir Walter Scott"
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Merit as a noun (countable):
A claim to commendation or a reward.
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Merit as a noun (countable):
A mark or token of approbation or to recognize excellence.
Examples:
"For her good performance in the examination, her teacher gave her ten merits."
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Merit as a noun (countable, uncountable):
Something deserving or worthy of positive recognition or reward.
Examples:
"synonyms excellence worth"
"His reward for his merit was a check for $50."
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Merit as a noun (uncountable, Buddhism, Jainism):
The sum of all the good deeds that a person does which determines the quality of the person's next state of existence and contributes to the person's growth towards enlightenment.
Examples:
"to acquire or make merit'"
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Merit as a noun (uncountable, law):
Usually in the plural form the merits: the substantive rightness or wrongness of a legal argument, a lawsuit, etc., as opposed to technical matters such as the admissibility of evidence or points of legal procedure; the overall good or bad quality, or rightness or wrongness, of some other thing.
Examples:
"Even though the plaintiff was ordered by the judge to pay some costs for not having followed the correct procedure, she won the case on the merits."
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Merit as a noun (countable, obsolete):
The quality or state of deserving retribution, whether reward or punishment.
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Merit as a verb (transitive):
To deserve, to earn.
Examples:
"Her performance merited its wild applause."
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Merit as a verb (intransitive):
To be deserving or worthy.
Examples:
"They were punished as they merited."
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Merit as a verb (transitive, obsolete, rare):
To reward.