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What does 'desserts' mean?
What does just deserts mean?
Where does the word dessert come from?
Despite its pronunciation, just deserts, with one s, is the proper spelling for the phrase meaning 'the punishment that one deserves.' The phrase is even older than dessert, using an older noun version of desert meaning 'deserved reward or punishment,' which is spelled like the arid land, but pronounced like the sweet treat.
Jul 18, 2019 · The “reward/punishment” sense of desert largely survives in (to get/receive one’s) just deserts, “to be punished or rewarded in a manner appropriate to one’s actions or behavior.” The just, here, doesn’t mean “only” but “fitting, appropriate.” The expression just deserts is recorded in the early 1500s, and is still popular today, e.g.,
just deserts. A deserved punishment or reward, as in He got his just deserts when Mary jilted him. This idiom employs desert in the sense of "what one deserves," a usage dating from the 1300s but obsolete except in this expression. See also: desert, just. The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
"just deserts" vs. "just desserts" We'll keep it short and sweet — this phrase has nothing to do with sugary treats. It's easy to confuse deserts with desserts because both words are pronounced the same way.
What's the meaning of the phrase 'Just deserts'? That which is deserved. A reward for what has been done – good or bad. What's the origin of the phrase 'Just deserts'? Deserts, in the sense of ‘things deserved’ has been used in English since at least the 13th century.
A deserved punishment or reward, as in He got his just deserts when Mary jilted him . This idiom employs desert in the sense of “what one deserves,” a usage dating from the 1300s but obsolete except in this expression.
