deal with

phrasal verb

dealt with; dealing with; deals with

1

: to be about (something) : to have (something) as a subject

Her speech dealt with health care and the nation's economy.

The film deals with some serious issues.

2

: to make business agreements with (someone)

He deals fairly with all his customers.

Their salespeople are very easy to deal with.

3

: to do something about (a person or thing that causes a problem or difficult situation)

The government dealt harshly with the rebels.

I'll deal with you later.

We weren't able/equipped/prepared to deal with such a large crowd of people.

4

: to accept or try to accept (something that is true and cannot be changed)

She's still trying to deal with his death.

The weather is bad, but we'll just have to deal with it.

Examples of deal with in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

For Farley, who marks his fifth anniversary as CEO on Wednesday, there have been industry-wide problems to deal with, as well as Ford-specific issues that the company is still in the process of navigating. —Michael Wayland, CNBC, 1 Oct. 2025

To avoid further supply line pinches like this, GM recently struck a long-term deal with Noveon Magnetics, whose San Marcos, Texas, facility is the only rare earth magnet manufacturer in the United States. —Rebecca A. Fannin, MSNBC Newsweek, 1 Oct. 2025

The state made a similar deal with the white owners of a nearby daycare that had to close due to flooding -- but ALDOT paid those property owners $165,000 for a portion of their property. —Maia Rosenfeld, ABC News, 1 Oct. 2025

With the pending spinoff, Versant has now signed its own deal with the WNBA to keep the league on USA. —Rick Porter, HollywoodReporter, 30 Sep. 2025