Deal Means an Agreement, a Portion and a Plank of Pine
A deal is an agreement or a quantity. A third, unrelated deal is softwood timber.
A deal is an agreement, a quantity, or the distribution of cards. All three come from one Old English word meaning a part or share: to deal is to divide something out, so dealing cards, a great deal of trouble and a business deal are the same idea of portioning. A separate *deal* means sawn pine or fir, from Middle Low German, which is why old furniture catalogues describe a deal table and mean the wood, not the bargain.
- An agreement. *A business deal.*
- A quantity. *A great deal.*
- To distribute cards. *Deal the cards.*
- Softwood timber. *A deal table.*
- Old English — *dæl*, a part. *The source.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | deal | A deal. |
| Plural | deals | Deals. |
| Verb | deal | Dealing. |
| Past | dealt | Dealt. |
| Agent | dealer | A dealer. |
- They struck a deal.Agreement.
- A great deal of work.Quantity.
- A plain deal table.Timber.
The dividing family
- Deal — a part or share
- Dole — a portion handed out, hence the dole
- Dealer — one who distributes goods or cards
- Ordeal — from a word meaning a judgement dealt out
- German *Teil*, a part, is the same root
Old English *dæl*, a part or share. The timber sense is Middle Low German *dele*, a plank.
How can deal mean both agreement and quantity?
Both come from the sense of a portion. A deal divides something between parties, and a great deal is a large portion.
What is a deal table?
One made of sawn pine or fir. That deal is a separate word, from Middle Low German, meaning a plank.