English Reference

Word

deal

US/ˈdiɫ/

UK/dˈiːl/

Forms

Infinitive

deal

Past

dealt

Past participle

dealt

Definitions

01business agreement

A2

n. an agreement between two or more people or companies, usually involving money or business.

n. a business arrangement or transaction, often involving a formal or informal contract between parties.

“The two companies signed a deal to work together on the new project.”

“After months of intense negotiation, the tech giants finally closed a multi-million dollar deal that would merge their cloud computing divisions.”

02a bargain

B1

n. a product or service that is sold at a very good price.

n. a transaction considered to be financially advantageous to the buyer.

“I got a great deal on this laptop during the summer sale.”

“Savvy travellers often wait until the last minute to book, hoping to secure a deal on luxury accommodation that would otherwise remain vacant.”

Antonyms

rip-off

03a lot

B1

n. a large amount of something; used in the phrase 'a great deal'.

n. an indefinite but large quantity or amount, typically used with 'great' or 'good'.

“He spent a great deal of time researching the history of his family.”

“The proposed infrastructure project has already attracted a great deal of criticism from local environmental groups concerned about habitat loss.”

Antonyms

04card games

B1

n. the act of giving out cards to players in a game.

n. the distribution of playing cards to participants in a game; also the period of play between such distributions.

“Whose deal is it? I think I gave the cards out last time.”

“The professional gambler watched the deal closely, looking for any slight hesitation that might reveal the dealer's lack of experience.”

05situation or problem

B2

n. a situation or a person's specific problem.

n. an unspecified situation, matter, or personal issue; often used in the question 'What is the deal?'.

“I don't know what the deal is with the broken lift, but it's been a week.”

“The manager wanted to know what the deal was with the delayed shipment, as the clients were becoming increasingly frustrated.”

Informal

06to manage or handle

A2

v. to take action to solve a problem or handle a situation.

v. to take the necessary action to document, manage, or resolve a situation; usually followed by 'with'.

“She is very good at dealing with difficult customers at the bank.”

“The crisis management team was forced to deal with several conflicting reports before they could issue an official statement to the press.”

Usage

Always takes the preposition 'with' when referring to a person or problem.

Antonyms

07to trade or sell

B2

v. to buy and sell things as a business, or to sell illegal drugs.

v. to engage in commercial trade; also used specifically for the illicit sale of narcotics.

“The shop on the corner deals in rare books and old maps.”

“The investigation revealed that the suspect had been dealing stolen electronics through various encrypted online marketplaces for several years.”

Usage

Takes 'in' for general goods (deal in antiques) but is often used without a preposition for illegal drugs.

Synonyms

08to give out cards

A2

v. to give playing cards to the people in a game.

v. to distribute playing cards to players in a systematic manner.

“Please deal the cards so we can start the next round of the game.”

“The croupier began to deal the cards with a mechanical precision that fascinated the onlookers at the high-stakes table.”

Antonyms

09to inflict damage

C1

v. to cause someone to suffer something bad, like a blow or a disappointment.

v. to deliver or inflict something unpleasant, such as a physical blow or a metaphorical setback.

“The sudden increase in taxes dealt a heavy blow to small businesses.”

“The supreme court's ruling dealt a significant blow to the government's proposed legislative reforms, effectively halting the project indefinitely.”

Formal

Etymology

From Middle English del, dele, from Old English dǣl (“part, share, portion”), from Proto-West Germanic daili, from Proto-Germanic dailiz (“part, deal”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰ(h₁)-oy-lo- (“part, watershed”). Cognate with Scots dele (“part, portion”), West Frisian diel (“part, share”), Dutch deel (“part, share, portion”), German Teil (“part, portion, section”), Danish, Slovene, and Swedish del (“part”), Icelandic deila (“division, contention”), Gothic 𐌳𐌰𐌹𐌻𐍃 (dails, “portion”). Related to Old English dāl (“portion”). More at dole.

From Middle English delen, from Old English dǣlan (“to divide, part”), from Proto-West Germanic dailijan, from Proto-Germanic dailijaną (“to divide, part, deal”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰail- (“part, watershed”). Cognates Cognate with West Frisian diele (“to divide, separate”), Dutch delen, German teilen, Swedish dela; and with Lithuanian dalinti (“divide”), Russian дели́ть (delítʹ).

From Middle English dele (“plank”), from Middle Low German dele, from Old Saxon thili, ultimately from Proto-Germanic *þiljǭ (“plank, board”); cognate with Old English þille. Doublet of thill.

Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Collocations

deal leaveadequately dealmainly dealspecifically dealdeal to signdeal with rising

Word family

Idioms

a good deal — Very much; to a great extent; a lot; lots.

a great deal — Very much; to a great extent; a lot; lots.

big deal — Something very important or difficult; a matter of great concern; a considerable feat or achievement.

cut a deal — To reach a negotiated agreement.

deal a bad hand — To assign unfavorable circumstances in life to someone.

deal a good hand — To assign favorable circumstances in life to someone.

deal a hand — To assign circumstances in life to someone.

done deal — An agreement that has been finally resolved or decided.

Faustian deal — A Faustian bargain.

good deal — Large number, amount, or extent.

Show all 16

great deal — Large number, amount, or extent; profusion.

play the hand one is dealt — To use the resources which one actually has available; to operate realistically, within the limits of one's circumstances.

raw deal — A situation in which a person is taken advantage of or treated unfairly; a situation in which a person is led to expect something, but receives either nothing or much less than was expected.

real deal — A thing or person that is genuine, authentic, or worthy of serious regard.

seal the deal — To come to an agreement; to finalize a deal.

sweetheart deal — A transaction, contract, or other agreement in which one party provides particularly favorable terms to the other, especially in suspicious circumstances.

Domain

Sports

This entry

Level
B1 · Intermediate
Frequency
Very common
Updated

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English Reference