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

So many military commanders were suspended from their duties because of their roles in the martial law decree that concern spread that the South was militarily unprepared to deal with a potential North Korean aggression, although the military dismissed such ideas. —Anthony Kuhn, NPR, 14 Dec. 2024

The Reagan family was forced to deal with an attack on the city and on police in particular. —Emily Longeretta, Variety, 14 Dec. 2024

That's about a gay teen in New York City whose parents are deported back to Mexico, and he's left to deal with the fallout of all of that and take care of his little sister. —Stephan Pechdimaldji, Newsweek, 14 Dec. 2024

Switzerland isn’t the only country dealing with this dynamic at the moment. —Tori Latham, Robb Report, 14 Dec. 2024