Crossword Genius

Did the business (5)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

dealt

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'did' is the definition.
The definition and answer can be both to do with social activities as well as being past participle verbs.
Maybe you can see a link between them that I don't see?

'the business' is the wordplay.
I cannot quite see how this works, but
'the' could be 't' (the is pronounced as a 't' sound in some dialects) and 't' is found within the answer.
'business' could be 'deal' and 'deal' is present in the answer.
No letters remain.
This explanation may well be incorrect...

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for dealt that I've seen before include "Dispensed (cards)" , "Delta (anag.)" , "Traded" , "Carried out business" , "Doled out" .)

I've seen this clue in the Evening Standard.
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