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treat

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verb [transitive] American English pronunciation: treat /trit/ 
Word Forms
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present tense
I/you/we/theytreat
he/she/ittreats
present participletreating
past tensetreated
past participletreated
Other entries for this word
 
  1. 1
    to behave toward someone in a particular way

    She felt she had been unfairly treated, and complained to her boss.

    You should treat others politely.

    treat someone with respect/kindness/contempt:

    We all treated my grandfather with the greatest respect.

    treat someone like/as something:

    I wish you would stop treating me like a child!

    treat someone well/badly:

    I still think the company treated you very badly.

    treat someone like royalty (=treat someone very well):

    Guests of the family are treated like royalty.

    Thesaurus entry for this meaning of treat
  2. 2
    to deal with something in a particular way

    The council said that it would treat her case sympathetically.

    treat something as something:

    These payments will be treated as income.

    treat something with caution/skepticism/suspicion:

    You should treat this new evidence with caution.

    Thesaurus entry for this meaning of treat
    1. a.
      to discuss something by speaking or writing about it

      Is the subject of neglected women artists treated in the course?

      Thesaurus entry for this meaning of treat
  3. 3
    [often passive] to use medicine or medical methods to cure a patient or an illness

    Vitamin deficiency can be properly diagnosed and treated by a doctor.

    treat someone for something:

    She was treated for smoke inhalation.

    treat someone/something with something:

    Patients are treated with a combination of medication and exercise.

    Thesaurus entry for this meaning of treat
  4. 4
    to put a substance on something in order to protect it or make it stronger

    Fabrics are treated to make them water-resistant.

    treat something with something:

    The wood is treated with chemicals to preserve it.

    Thesaurus entry for this meaning of treat
  5. 5
    to do or to buy something special for yourself or someone else

    You took me to the movies last week, so this time I'll treat you.

    treat yourself to something:

    She treated herself to a nice hot bubble bath.

    treat someone to something:

    Bob treated us all to dinner at an expensive restaurant.

    Thesaurus entry for this meaning of treat

phrasal verbs

This is the American English definition of treat. View British English definition of treat.

Change your default dictionary and thesaurus to British English.

View the pronunciation for treat.

 

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