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Definition of treat verb from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

treat

verb
 
/triːt/
 
/triːt/
Verb Forms
present simple I / you / we / they treat
 
/triːt/
 
/triːt/
he / she / it treats
 
/triːts/
 
/triːts/
past simple treated
 
/ˈtriːtɪd/
 
/ˈtriːtɪd/
past participle treated
 
/ˈtriːtɪd/
 
/ˈtriːtɪd/
-ing form treating
 
/ˈtriːtɪŋ/
 
/ˈtriːtɪŋ/
Idioms Phrasal Verbs
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    behave towards somebody/something

  1. to behave in a particular way towards somebody/something
    • treat somebody/something with something to treat people with respect
    • to treat people with caution/suspicion/dignity
    • Treat your keyboard with care and it should last for years.
    • treat somebody/something + adv./prep. All candidates will be treated equally, regardless of age.
    • They treat their animals quite badly.
    • She felt unfairly treated.
    • treat somebody/something like something My parents still treat me like a child.
    • treat somebody/something as something He was treated as a hero on his release from prison.
    • treat somebody/something as if… They treat him as if he weren't even there.
    Extra Examples
    • Parents still tend to treat boys differently from girls.
    • He is guilty and should be treated accordingly.
    • You should treat people with more respect.
    • the tendency to treat older people as helpless and dependent
    • He treated the idea with suspicion.
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb
    • equally
    • equitably
    • fairly
    verb + treat
    • tend to
    preposition
    • as
    • like
    • with
    phrases
    • deserve to be treated
    See full entry
  2. consider

  3. treat something as something to consider something in a particular way
    • I decided to treat his remark as a joke.
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb
    • equally
    • equitably
    • fairly
    verb + treat
    • tend to
    preposition
    • as
    • like
    • with
    phrases
    • deserve to be treated
    See full entry
  4. to deal with or discuss something in a particular way
    • treat something + adv./prep. The question is treated in more detail in the next chapter.
    • These allegations are being treated very seriously indeed.
    • treat something as something All cases involving children are treated as urgent.
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb
    • equally
    • equitably
    • fairly
    verb + treat
    • tend to
    preposition
    • as
    • like
    • with
    phrases
    • deserve to be treated
    See full entry
  5. illness/injury

  6. to give medical care or attention to a person, an illness, an injury, etc.
    • treat somebody for something She was treated for sunstroke.
    • The students involved were treated for head injuries.
    • treat somebody The clinic has treated several thousand patients free of charge .
    • She was treated in hospital.
    • treat somebody (for something) with something He was treated for depression with medication prescribed by his doctor.
    • treat something to treat a disease/a condition/cancer
    • The hospital treated forty cases of malaria last year.
    • Antibiotics are used to treat bacterial infections.
    • treat something with something The condition is usually treated with drugs and a strict diet.
    Collocations InjuriesInjuriesBeing injured
    • have a fall/​an injury
    • receive/​suffer/​sustain a serious injury/​a hairline fracture/(especially British English) whiplash/​a gunshot wound
    • hurt/​injure your ankle/​back/​leg
    • damage the brain/​an ankle ligament/​your liver/​the optic nerve/​the skin
    • pull/​strain/​tear a hamstring/​ligament/​muscle/​tendon
    • sprain/​twist your ankle/​wrist
    • break a bone/​your collarbone/​your leg/​three ribs
    • fracture/​crack your skull
    • break/​chip/​knock out/​lose a tooth
    • burst/​perforate your eardrum
    • dislocate your finger/​hip/​jaw/​shoulder
    • bruise/​cut/​graze your arm/​knee/​shoulder
    • burn/​scald yourself/​your tongue
    • bang/​bump/​hit/ (informal) bash your elbow/​head/​knee (on/​against something)
    Treating injuries
    • treat somebody for burns/​a head injury/​a stab wound
    • examine/​clean/​dress/​bandage/​treat a bullet wound
    • repair a damaged/​torn ligament/​tendon/​cartilage
    • amputate/​cut off an arm/​a finger/​a foot/​a leg/​a limb
    • put on/ (formal) apply/​take off (especially North American English) a Band-Aid™/(British English) a plaster/​a bandage
    • need/​require/​put in/ (especially British English) have (out)/ (North American English) get (out) stitches
    • put on/​rub on/ (formal) apply cream/​ointment/​lotion
    • have/​receive/​undergo (British English) physiotherapy/(North American English) physical therapy
    Extra Examples
    • She was treated for cuts and bruises.
    • The drug is effective at treating depression.
    • We can treat this condition quite successfully with antibiotics.
    Topics Healthcareb1
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb
    • easily
    • appropriately
    • properly
    verb + treat
    • be difficult to
    • use something to
    preposition
    • for
    • with
    phrases
    • be effective in treating something
    See full entry
  7. use chemical

  8. to use a chemical substance or process to clean, protect, preserve, etc. something
    • treat something (with something) to treat crops with insecticide
    • wood treated with preservative
    Extra Examples
    • Chemically treated hair can become dry and brittle.
    • You need to treat this wood for woodworm.
    • Water is discharged from the sewage works after being treated.
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb
    • chemically
    preposition
    • for
    • with
    See full entry
  9. pay for something pleasant

  10. treat somebody/yourself (to something) to pay for something that somebody/you will enjoy and that you do not usually have or do
    • She treated him to lunch.
    • Don't worry about the cost—I'll treat you.
    • I'm going to treat myself to a new pair of shoes.
  11. Word OriginMiddle English (in the senses ‘negotiate’ and ‘discuss a subject’): from Old French traitier, from Latin tractare ‘handle’, frequentative of trahere ‘draw, pull’. The current noun sense dates from the mid 17th cent.
Idioms
treat somebody like dirt
  1. (informal) to treat somebody with no respect at all
    • They treat their workers like dirt.
See treat in the Oxford Advanced American DictionarySee treat in the Oxford Learner's Dictionary of Academic English
trait
noun
 
 
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