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
- nontreated adjective
- overtreat verb
- self-treated adjective
- treatable adjective
- treater noun
- untreated adjective
- well-treated adjective
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”; tract 1
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.
Her first major contribution to the field of anxiety and fear-based disorders was in the 1970s and ’80s, with a therapy called exposure and response prevention that she used to treat patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 3, 2026
If there’s any hope of moving forward on a human, one-to-one level, how we treat each other must be drastically reexamined.
From Salon • Apr. 3, 2026
The receiving bank will usually treat it as “new money” because it’s coming from another financial institution.
From MarketWatch • Mar. 31, 2026
Sherborne was then forced to treat Burrows as a witness who was hostile to their claim, rather than one who supported it.
From BBC • Mar. 31, 2026
“Or are you going to treat me like I’m six years old for the rest of my life?”
From "The Wrong Way Home" by Kate O’Shaughnessy
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.
