What does deal mean?
Word: Deal
Part of Speech: Noun, verb
Meaning: Deal means an agreement in which each person promises to do or give something. To deal with a problem is to sort it out.
Synonyms: agreement
How do you spell deal?
Syllables: deal
Tricky part: The past form trips children up. It is dealt, with a t on the end and a short e sound as in felt, never dealed.
Watch out for: deall, dealed
Memory tip: Felt, belt and melt all rhyme with dealt, and every one of them ends in t. Let that t remind you that dealt is already in the past.
Idioms and Phrases
- a great deal: a lot, or very much Example: "Kabir has learnt a great deal about birds from his grandpa."
Deal in a sentence
Example 1: Zara and Kabir made a deal: she would wash the paintbrushes and he would dry them.
Example 2: Our teacher showed us how to deal with a puzzle that looks too hard at first.
Example 3: The sports shop had a good deal on footballs, two for the price of one.
Fun Fact
In Old English, deal meant a part or a share of something, so long ago a deal was simply your piece of the whole.
Practise the CREST Way
Spellacadabra
Choose the correct option to make a meaningful word:
d__l
a) ae
b) ie
c) ee
d) ea
Show answer
d) ea. Only ea gives a real word here: deal, an agreement between friends.
Sound Check
Which of the following words rhymes with deal?
a) dull
b) wall
c) wheel
d) well
Show answer
c) wheel. Say them aloud: wheel ends with the same long sound and l as deal, while well, wall and dull have short vowels.
Word Champ
Which of the words cannot be made using the letters in the given word?
deal
a) add
b) lead
c) led
d) lad
Show answer
a) add. Deal has just one d, so add, which needs two, cannot be made; lead, led and lad fit.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Kabir and Zara made a deal. Which sentence could be part of it?
a) The ball rolled under the bench by the gate.
b) We played cricket in the park after lunch.
c) My new bat is made of light, strong wood.
d) You lend me your bat, and I'll lend you my ball.
Show answer
d) You lend me your bat, and I'll lend you my ball.
2. Mum says, "I will deal with the spilt paint." What is she going to do?
a) paint with it
b) buy some more
c) leave it there
d) clean it up
Show answer
d) clean it up
