merit

(noun) The quality of being good, right, or important; a good quality or advantage. (verb) To be worthy of or deserve something.

• meritocracy/ˌmɛrɪˈtɒkrəsi/(n)精英政治；功绩制
• meritorious/ˌmɛrɪˈtɔːrɪəs/(adj)有功绩的；值得表扬的

• on its own merits
• have merit
• judge on merit
• merit attention
• merit-based
• the merits of
• lack merit
• considerable merit

1. 1.Each application will be assessed on its merits, without regard to the applicant's previous relationship with the organisation.
2. 2.The idea certainly has merit, but it would require significant changes to existing systems.

• worth/wɜːθ/— the value or quality of something
• virtue/ˈvɜːtʃuː/— a good quality or feature
• value/ˈvæljuː/— the importance or usefulness of something

from Latin "meritum" = that which one deserves, from "merere" (to earn, deserve)