meritocracy
noun
mer·i·toc·ra·cy ˌmer-ə-ˈtä-krə-sē 
plural meritocracies
: a system, organization, or society in which people are chosen and moved into positions of success, power, and influence on the basis of their demonstrated abilities and merit (see merit entry 1 sense 1b)
Only the elite, in that new meritocracy, would enjoy the opportunity for self-fulfillment …
Robert Penn Warren
Robert Penn WarrenThough founded theoretically on principles of meritocracy, the public arena was parceled into spheres of personal influence … Mac Margolis
Mac MargolisA paradox lies at the heart of this new American meritocracy. Merit has replaced the old system of inherited privilege … . But merit, it turns out, is at least partly class-based. Parents with money, education and connections cultivate in their children the habits that the meritocracy rewards. Janny Scott et al.
Janny Scott et al. also : the people who are moved into such positions
a member of the meritocracy
France remains a tightly centralized nation, run by a governmental and business meritocracy carefully prepared for positions of power in elite graduate schools. Jim Hoagland
Jim Hoagland meritocratic
ˌmer-ə-tə-ˈkra-tik
adjective 
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the Web There’s typically a lack of communication and misalignment between achievements and rewards, which forecloses the possibility of meritocracy. Jeff Housenbold, Forbes, 9 Aug. 2022 Yale Law School professor Daniel Markovits argues that meritocracy has actually caused more inequality rather than removing it. Orawan Limnalong, Forbes, 16 Aug. 2022 The four are objectivity, meritocracy, equal goalposts, and bad apples. Ellen Mcgirt, Fortune, 31 May 2022 Unfortunately, college sports aren’t a money meritocracy. Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, 16 July 2022 There’s truly a meritocracy of ideas, and everybody is equal in that form. Danielle Abril, Washington Post, 7 July 2022 Adopting promotion and relegation could help bring more meritocracy to the sport. Andrew Beaton, WSJ, 4 July 2022 Specifically, the topic of affirmative action has drawn significant ire across the country as a practice that undermines meritocracy and simply shifts discrimination. Rohan Krishnan, National Review, 26 June 2022 To make strides in this direction, organizations must double down on efforts to reach out to minorities, use more objective criteria for their hiring and career decisions, and reframe the belief that these initiatives challenge meritocracy. Caterina Bulgarella, Forbes, 24 June 2022 See More
Jeff Housenbold, Forbes, 9 Aug. 2022 Yale Law School professor Daniel Markovits argues that meritocracy has actually caused more inequality rather than removing it. Orawan Limnalong, Forbes, 16 Aug. 2022 The four are objectivity, meritocracy, equal goalposts, and bad apples. Ellen Mcgirt, Fortune, 31 May 2022 Unfortunately, college sports aren’t a money meritocracy. Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, 16 July 2022 There’s truly a meritocracy of ideas, and everybody is equal in that form. Danielle Abril, Washington Post, 7 July 2022 Adopting promotion and relegation could help bring more meritocracy to the sport. Andrew Beaton, WSJ, 4 July 2022 Specifically, the topic of affirmative action has drawn significant ire across the country as a practice that undermines meritocracy and simply shifts discrimination. Rohan Krishnan, National Review, 26 June 2022 To make strides in this direction, organizations must double down on efforts to reach out to minorities, use more objective criteria for their hiring and career decisions, and reframe the belief that these initiatives challenge meritocracy. Caterina Bulgarella, Forbes, 24 June 2022 See More Word History
Etymology
merit entry 1 + -o- + -cracy
Note: The neologism meritocracy was apparently first used in print by the British industrial sociologist Alan Fox (1920-2002) in the article "Class and Equality," Socialist Commentary, May, 1956, pp. 11-13. The word is now closely associated with the book The Rise of the Meritocracy (London: Thames & Hudson, 1958) by the sociologist and politician Michael Young (1915-2002), who is often credited with its coinage.
First Known Use
1956, in the meaning defined above