Meaning & use
treat
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Meanings
verbtransitive
To act toward someone or something in a particular manner.
Grammar: Takes an object and usually a manner word or as: treat him kindly, treat it as a joke.
Patterns
- treat someone well/badly
- treat something as something
- treat someone like something
Our manager treats everyone with respect.
Please treat the old books gently.
They treated the warning as a joke.
verbtransitivemedical
To give medical care to a patient or an illness.
Grammar: The object can be the person or the condition: treat a patient, treat an infection; often with for or with.
Patterns
- treat someone for something
- treat something with something
The clinic treats hundreds of patients a week.
She was treated for a broken wrist.
Doctors treated the infection with antibiotics.
verbtransitive
To apply a substance or process to something in order to protect, clean or change it.
Grammar: Takes an object and often with: treat wood with oil.
Patterns
- treat something with something
Workers treat the fence with a preservative every spring.
The plant treats wastewater before it reaches the river.
He treated the stain with vinegar.
verbtransitive
To pay for something enjoyable for someone else, such as a meal or outing.
Grammar: Often uses to: treat someone to dinner; also treat yourself.
Patterns
- treat someone to something
- treat yourself
Let me treat you to lunch for helping me move.
She treated herself to a new jacket after the promotion.
Grandpa treated the kids to ice cream.
nouncountable
Something special and enjoyable, often food or an outing, that is given or done as a gift.
Grammar: A countable noun: a treat, some treats; often a treat for someone.
Patterns
- a treat for someone
- as a treat
Chocolate is a rare treat in our house.
The trip to the zoo was a birthday treat.
It was a real treat to hear her sing live.
Word forms
| third person singular | treats |
|---|---|
| past tense | treated |
| past participle | treated |
| -ing form | treating |
| plural (noun) | treats |
Common combinations
- treat someone with respect
- Teachers should treat students with respect.
- treat a patient
- The doctor treated the patient for dehydration.
- treat yourself
- You deserve a break, so treat yourself to a spa day.
- special treat
- Pancakes on Sunday are a special treat.
- treat badly
- He felt that the company had treated him badly.
- trick or treat
- The children went out trick or treat on Halloween.
Synonyms and how they differ
- handle
- Handle focuses on dealing with or managing something, while treat adds how kindly or harshly you do so.
- cure
- Cure means to make a person or illness completely well, whereas treat only means to give care, which may not succeed.
- regard
- Regard describes how you think of something, whereas treat describes how you act toward it.
- spoil
- As a noun idea, spoil means giving too much pampering, while treat is a single special pleasure.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: treat or cure? treat or treaty?
treat vs cure
A cure ends a disease; a treatment is what is done to try to help, and may only ease symptoms.
treat vs treaty
A treaty is a formal agreement between states and is unrelated to everyday acts of treating.
Practice
The vet ___ the injured dog for a deep cut on its leg.
Choose one answer.
Treat for is the standard pattern for giving medical care for a condition. Cured would claim the result, and handled or regarded do not mean medical care.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “treat”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.