American Heritage Dictionary Entry: deal HOW TO USE THE DICTIONARY To look up an entry in The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, use the search window above. For best results, after typing in the word, click on the “Search” button instead of using the “enter” key. Some compound words (like bus rapid transit, dog whistle, or identity theft) don’t appear on the drop-down list when you type them in the search bar. For best results with compound words, place a quotation mark before the compound word in the search window. guide to the dictionary THE USAGE PANEL The Usage Panel is a group of nearly 200 prominent scholars, creative writers, journalists, diplomats, and others in occupations requiring mastery of language. Annual surveys have gauged the acceptability of particular usages and grammatical constructions. The Panelists NEED HELP SOLVING A CROSSWORD PUZZLE? Go to our Crossword Puzzle Solver and type in the letters that you know, and the Solver will produce a list of possible solutions. -- AMERICAN HERITAGE DICTIONARY APP The new American Heritage Dictionary app is now available for iOS and Android. THE AMERICAN HERITAGE DICTIONARY BLOG The articles in our blog examine new words, revised definitions, interesting images from the fifth edition, discussions of usage, and more. OPEN DICTIONARY PROJECT Share your ideas for new words and new meanings of old words! Start Sharing Now! -- See word lists from the best-selling 100 Words Series! Find out more! INTERESTED IN DICTIONARIES? Check out the Dictionary Society of North America at http://www.dictionarysociety.com deal 1 (dēl) Share: Tweet 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: Tweet 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. 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