raw deal
An unfair situation or poor treatment. Mandy really got a raw deal at that job. They passed her over for so many promotions!
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.
*raw deal
an instance of unfair or bad treatment. (*Typically: get ~; have ~; give someone ~.) Mary got a raw deal on her traffic ticket. She was innocent, but she had to pay a big fine. I bought a used TV that worked for two days and then quit. I sure got a raw deal. You sure had a raw deal.
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
raw deal
An instance of unfair or harsh treatment, as in After 25 years with the bank Bob got a raw deal-no pension, no retirement benefits of any kind, just a gold watch. Raw here means "crude" or "unfair." [First half of 1900s]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
a raw (or rough) deal
a situation in which someone receives unfair or harsh treatment. informalFarlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017
a raw deal
n. an unfair deal; unfair treatment. My last job was a raw deal. I hope this is better.
McGraw-Hill's Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions Copyright © 2006 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
raw deal
An instance of unfair treatment: got a raw deal from our insurance company.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
raw deal, a
Harsh or unfair treatment. The raw in this expression, which originated in America, means “crude.” In 1912 a Canadian dictionary defined the term as “a swindle,” a meaning not much invoked today. E. C. Bentley used the expression in Those Days (1940): “If it was what is known nowadays as a raw deal, they did not mind.”
The Dictionary of Clichés by Christine Ammer Copyright © 2013 by Christine Ammer