(intransitive) To discourse; to handle a subject in writing or speaking; to conduct a discussion. [from 14th c.]
(transitive) To discourse on; to represent or deal with in a particular way, in writing or speaking. [from 14th c.]
(transitive, intransitive, obsolete) To entreat or beseech (someone). [14th-17th c.]
(transitive) To handle, deal with or behave towards in a specific way. [from 14th c.]
(transitive) To entertain with food or drink, especially at one's own expense; to show hospitality to; to pay for as celebration or reward. [from 16th c.]
(transitive) To care for medicinally or surgically; to apply medical care to. [from 18th c.]
(transitive) To subject to a chemical or other action; to act upon with a specific scientific result in mind. [from 19th c.]
“Forests are renewable natural resources, but they must be treated with care.”
“A randomized study of patients treated with the drug showed it to be effective.”
“This study offers a pragmatic account of verbal irony, arguing that verbal irony can be best treated as a special type of conversational implicature.”
