🗓️ Idiom: Strike a Deal (verb)
💬 Meaning
- To reach an agreement after discussion or negotiation.
- To successfully arrange a business or financial agreement.
🧠 Example Sentences
- After weeks of talks, the two companies finally struck a deal.
- The union leaders struck a deal with management to avoid a strike.
- We hope to strike a deal with the supplier before the end of the week.
🏛️ Origin
The phrase strike a deal comes from the older expression strike a bargain. In the 16th and 17th centuries, merchants would often “strike hands” — a gesture like a handshake — to show agreement. Over time, this action became connected with making formal agreements, and the phrase developed into the modern form strike a deal.
📝 Practice Exercises
1. Fill in the blank:
After long negotiations, the partners managed to __________.
Answer
strike a deal
2. Multiple choice:
Which situation shows “strike a deal”?
a) Two sides agree on the price of a contract.
b) A manager cancels a meeting.
c) A company rejects an offer without discussion.
Answer
a) Two sides agree on the price of a contract.
3. Change the sentence using “strike a deal”:
“The two companies reached an agreement on the merger.”
Answer
The two companies struck a deal on the merger.
ℹ️ Other Useful Pages
📚 Learning Resources
👉 Negotiation Idioms
👉 Business English Idioms List
👥 Support Spaces
👉 Student Space
👉 Tutor Toolkit
⭐️ Extras
📫 Get a Daily Idiom
🚀 Build a Business with AI
Rob is a CELTA qualified English teacher with 15 years of international experience. He has a BSc and PGDip from Loughborough and St Andrews universities in the UK. He has taught in Thailand and Saudi Arabia and now works with professionals worldwide.
