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deal 1 (dēl)
Share:
v. dealt (dĕlt), deal·ing, deals
v.tr.
1. To give out in shares or portions; apportion: a critic who deals out as much praise as blame. See Synonyms at distribute.
2. Games
a. To distribute (playing cards) among players.
b. To give (a specific card) to a player while so distributing.
3. To sell: deal prescriptions; deal cocaine.
4. To administer; deliver: dealt him a blow to the stomach.
v.intr.
1. To be occupied or concerned: a book that deals with the Middle Ages.
2. To behave in a specified way toward another or others; have transactions: deal honestly with competitors.
3. To take action with respect to someone or something: The committee will deal with this complaint.
4. Informal To cope: I can't deal with all of this arguing!
5. To do business; trade: dealing in diamonds.
6. Games To distribute playing cards.
7. Slang To buy and sell drugs, especially illegally.
8. Baseball To throw a pitch.
n.
1. The act or a round of apportioning or distributing.
2. Games
a. Distribution of playing cards.
b. The cards so distributed; a hand.
c. The right or turn of a player to distribute the cards.
d. The playing of one hand.
3. An indefinite quantity, extent, or degree: has a great deal of experience.
4.
a. An agreement, especially one that is mutually beneficial. See Synonyms at agreement.
b. A business transaction: struck a deal to buy a car dealership.
c. A legal contract: signed a deal to play for a new team.
5. Informal A sale favorable especially to the buyer; a bargain.
6. Informal Treatment received: a raw deal; a fair deal.
7. Informal The situation or background information regarding something: What's the deal with the new teacher?
Phrasal Verbs:
deal in
1. To include (someone) in a card game by dealing cards to that person.
2. To include (someone) in an enterprise or undertaking.
deal out
1. To exclude (someone) from a card game by not giving cards to that person.
2. To exclude (someone) from an enterprise or undertaking.

[Middle English delen, from Old English dǣlan, to divide, share; see dail- in the Appendix of Indo-European roots.]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
 
deal 2 (dēl)
Share:
n.
1.
a. A fir or pine board cut to standard dimensions.
b. Such boards or planks considered as a group.
2. Fir or pine wood.

[Middle English dele, from Middle Dutch and Middle Low German dele, plank.]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
 

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

    Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

    Indo-European Roots

    Semitic Roots

    The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.