DEAL  . (1) . (A

common Teutonic word for a part or portion, cf . Ger . Tell, and the Eng. variant " dole "), a division or part, obsolete except in such phrases as " a great deal " or " a good deal," where it equals quantity or lot . From the verb ". to deal," meaning primarily to divide into parts, come such uses as for the giving out of cards to the players in a game, or for a business transaction . (2) (Also a Teutonic word, meaning a plank or board, cf . Ger . Diele, Dutch deel), strictly a term in carpentry and joinery for a sawn plank, usually of pine or fir, 9 in. wide and 2 to 42 in. thick . (See JOINERY.) The word is also used more loosely of the timber from which such deals are cut, thus " white deal " is used of the wood of the Norway spruce, and " red deal " of the Scotch pine .