New Deal

noun

: the legislative and administrative program of President Franklin D. Roosevelt designed to promote economic recovery and social reform during the 1930s

also : the period of this program

New Dealer noun

New Dealish

-ˈdē-lish 

adjective

New Dealism

-ˈdē-ˌli-zəm 

noun

Examples of New Deal in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The Cohen Building originally housed the Social Security Administration, an important piece of the New Deal legacy, and contains frescoes painted in the 1940s by famed artist Seymour Fogel on the entrance lobby walls, Okin said. — Bill Hutchinson, ABC News, 20 Aug. 2026

Okin is the assistant director at Living New Deal, an organization devoted to documenting New Deal-era art and public works. — Rachel Treisman, NPR, 20 Aug. 2026

In 1955, Hofstadter, one of the great American historians of the 20th century, published The Age of Reform—a political and social history of the years 1890 to 1940, the period of populism, progressivism, and the New Deal. — Emma Sarappo, The Atlantic, 14 Aug. 2026

For now, Social Security’s birthday remains a celebration of one of the New Deal’s most durable achievements. — Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 14 Aug. 2026

Word History

Etymology

from the supposed resemblance to the situation of freshness and equality of opportunity afforded by a fresh deal in a card game

First Known Use

1932, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for New Deal

• abele
• alkyl
• anneal
• appeal
• cartwheel
• conceal
• congeal
• coquille
• corneal
• cornmeal
• flywheel
• genteel