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deal with

British  

verb

  1. to take action on

    to deal with each problem in turn

  2. to punish

    the headmaster will deal with the culprit

  3. to be concerned with

    the book deals with Dutch art

  4. to conduct oneself (towards others), esp with regard to fairness

    he can be relied on to deal fairly with everyone

  5. to do business with

    the firm deals with many overseas suppliers

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

deal with Idioms  
  1. See deal in , def. 1.

  2. Do business with someone, as in I like dealing with this company . [Late 1600s] Also see deal in , def. 2.

  3. Take action in, handle, administer, dispose of, as in The committee will deal with this matter . [Second half of 1400s]

  4. Act in a specified way toward someone, as in He dealt extremely fairly with his competitors . [c. 1300]


Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

Those viewers who live in less-polite environs than Idaho will likely be taken by the genteel way the officers deal with the young people, however the kids are involved with the case.

From The Wall Street Journal Jul. 29, 2026

Not even Odysseus had to deal with that.

From Los Angeles Times Jul. 29, 2026

The deal with Russia’s Arnest Management is expected to complete during the second half of 2026.

From The Wall Street Journal Jul. 29, 2026

After 11 trophies in three years in Spain, Batlle, 27, has signed a four-year deal with an option for a further 12 months at Arsenal and is targeting more silverware.

From BBC Jul. 28, 2026

“Hey, if you can name a feeling, you can deal with it, right?”

From "Keeping Pace" by Laurie Morrison

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