treat
Americanverb (used with object)
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to act or behave toward (a person) in some specified way.
to treat someone with respect.
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to consider or regard in a specified way, and deal with accordingly.
to treat a matter as unimportant.
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to deal with (a disease, patient, etc.) in order to relieve or cure.
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to deal with in speech or writing; discuss.
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to deal with, develop, or represent artistically, especially in some specified manner or style.
to treat a theme realistically.
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to subject to some agent or action in order to bring about a particular result.
to treat a substance with an acid.
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to entertain; give hospitality to.
He treats diplomats in the lavish surroundings of his country estate.
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to provide food, entertainment, gifts, etc., at one's own expense.
Let me treat you to dinner.
verb (used without object)
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to deal with a subject in speech or writing; discourse.
a work that treats of the caste system in India.
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to give, or bear the expense of, a treat.
Is it my turn to treat?
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to carry on negotiations with a view to a settlement; discuss terms of settlement; negotiate.
noun
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entertainment, food, drink, etc., given by way of compliment or as an expression of friendly regard.
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anything that affords particular pleasure or enjoyment.
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the act of treating.
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one's turn to treat.
noun
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a celebration, entertainment, gift, or feast given for or to someone and paid for by another
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any delightful surprise or specially pleasant occasion
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the act of treating
verb
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(tr) to deal with or regard in a certain manner
she treats school as a joke
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(tr) to apply treatment to
to treat a patient for malaria
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(tr) to subject to a process or to the application of a substance
to treat photographic film with developer
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(tr; often foll by to) to provide (someone) (with) as a treat
he treated the children to a trip to the zoo
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formal to deal (with), as in writing or speaking
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formal (intr) to discuss settlement; negotiate
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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treatableadjective
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untreatedadjective
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overtreatverb
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treaternoun
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nontreatedadjective
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self-treatedadjective
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well-treatedadjective
Conjugated Forms
Present
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have treatedperfect
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has treatedperfect 3rd person singular
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has been treatingperfect progressive 3rd person singular
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are treatingprogressive
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treatingparticiple
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have been treatingperfect progressive
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am treatingprogressive 1st person singular
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is treatingprogressive 3rd person singular
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treatssingular 3rd person
Past
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had treatedperfect
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had been treatingperfect progressive
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was treatingprogressive singular
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treatedparticiple
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were treatingprogressive plural
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treatedsimple
Future
Etymology
Origin of treat
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English verb treten, from Old French tretier, traitier, from Latin tractāre “to drag, handle, treat,” frequentative of trahere “to drag”; see tract 1
Explanation
If you've been working hard and living thriftily for months on end, give yourself a treat: take the night off and go out to dinner and a movie. One sense of treat has to do with pleasures and special occasions. You might treat your mother to a pedicure, or give your dog a tasty treat. Treat can also mean "to carry on negotiations," (the meaning that feeds into treaty), or "to take care of." A doctor treats your illness with medication. If you treat a boy as an adult, that means you act as though he is one, even if he's only 16. Treat him carefully!
Vocabulary lists containing treat
National Nurses Week: Tasks and Equipment
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"Water at Work"
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"On the Menu" and "Find the Adaptations"
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
LED technology is commonly used in medical settings to treat eczema, acne, psoriasis and sun damage, but at-home LED devices are becoming more popular.
From BBC • Jun. 9, 2026
Communities also tend to be suspicious of outsiders who suddenly flood in to treat what they say is an emergency but that many locals see as a spectacular misuse of resources.
From Slate • Jun. 9, 2026
Beyond a financial injection, the $2 billion funding package served as a vote of confidence in a technology that many still treat as an unproven, long-term gamble.
From Barron's • Jun. 9, 2026
Instead, Nile’s notoriety and status informed Rhys’ choices: “People treat you differently if they know you’re incredibly wealthy. If you have this social stigma of a missing wife, people treat you very differently.”
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 8, 2026
“What have I done to your family that you’d treat me this way?”
From "The Many Assassinations of Samir, the Seller of Dreams" by Daniel Nayeri
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
