(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

tratar

1. (transitive) to try

• Bal Palazios, Santiago (2002), “tratar”, in Dizionario breu de a luenga aragonesa, Zaragoza, →ISBN

From Latin tractāre.

tratar (first-person singular indicative present trato, past participle tratáu)

1. to treat (behave in a certain way)
2. to treat (act to a person in a certain way)
3. to treat (an illness, problem etc.)
4. to trade; to deal (in, with something)
5. to touch (talk about)
6. (reflexive) to deal (with); to be involved (in, with)
7. to try
8. to threaten

• “tratar”, in Diccionariu de la llingua asturiana [Dictionary of the Asturian Language] (in Asturian), 1st edition, Academy of the Asturian Language [Asturian: Academia de la Llingua Asturiana], 2000, →ISBN
• Xosé Lluis García Arias (2002–2004), “tratar”, in Diccionario general de la lengua asturiana [General Dictionary of the Asturian Language] (in Spanish), Editorial Prensa Asturiana, →ISBN

Semi-learned borrowing from Latin tractāre (“to drag; to handle; to practice”), from tractus (“dragged”), perfect passive participle of trahō (“to drag; to extract”).

• IPA^(key): /tɾaˈtaɾ/ [t̪ɾaˈt̪aɾ]
• Rhymes: -aɾ
• Hyphenation: tra‧tar

tratar (first-person singular present trato, first-person singular preterite tratei, past participle tratado)

1. to deal
2. to treat in an attempt to cure

• “tratar”, in Dicionario da Real Academia Galega (in Galician), A Coruña: Royal Galician Academy, 2012–2026
• “tratar”, in Dicionário Estraviz de galego (in Galician), 2014–2026

• tractar (obsolete)

Semi-learned form modified from older tractar, borrowed from Latin tractāre (“to drag; to handle; to practice”), from tractus (“dragged”), perfect passive participle of trahō (“to drag; to extract”).

• Audio (Portugal (Porto)):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -aɾ
• Hyphenation: tra‧tar

tratar (first-person singular present trato, first-person singular preterite tratei, past participle tratado)

1. to treat (to handle, deal with or behave towards in a specific way) [with direct object (more common) or de ‘someone’, along with bem or mal or other adverb ‘a particular way’]

   Vi um senhor tratando seus filhos muito mal.

   I saw a gentleman treating his children very badly.

2. to deal with, to handle, to take care of [with com ‘something/something’]
3. to treat (to apply medical care to a person) [with direct object (more common) or de ‘someone’]

   A enfermeira tratou as vítimas da explosão.

   The nurse treated the victims of the explosion.

4. to treat (to apply medical care in order to eliminate a condition) [with direct object (more common) or de ‘a medical condition’]

   O oncologista quis que eu usasse químio para tratar o câncer.

   The oncologist wanted me to use chemo to treat the cancer.

5. (transitive) to treat (to subject to a chemical or other action)

   Tratei o meu cabelo com um xampu importado.

   I treated my hair with an imported shampoo.

6. (intransitive) to negotiate, to deal, to have dealings [with com ‘with someone’]
7. (reflexive, reciprocal) to negotiate (with one another)

   Nós nos tratamos pela Internet.

   We negotiated (with one another) via the Internet.

8. (transitive) to address [with direct object ‘someone’, along with por or como or de ‘with a specific form of address’]

   Reis devem ser tratados como “Vossa Majestade”.

   Kings must be addressed as “Your Majesty”.

9. (pronominal) to behave (to conduct oneself in a given way)

   Seus filhos se trataram bem no funeral.

   Your children behaved well in the funeral.

10. (transitive or intransitive) to take care of; to care for (to attend to the needs of) [with direct object (more common) or de ‘something’]

    Depois que ficou velho, mandou o filho tratar do negócio da família.

    After he got old, he told his son to care for the family business.

11. (transitive or intransitive) to cover, to deal with, to concern, to be about (to have as its subject) [with de or direct object ‘a subject’]

    Este livro trata de vários temas.

    This book covers various subjects.

    Este livro trata o tema da matemática.

    This book covers the subject of mathematics.

12. (pronominal) to cover, to deal with, to concern, to be about (to have as its subject) [with de ‘a subject’]

    Este artigo se trata da guerra.

    This article is about the war.

13. (intransitive) to talk about; to discuss [with de ‘something’]

    O professor tratou de matrizes.

    The professor discussed matrices.

14. (to do something) promptly; usually used to emphasise orders [with de (+ infinitive) ‘to do something’]

    Trate de terminar suas tarefas.

    Finish your chores once and for all.

15. (Brazil, transitive) to feed (to give someone, especially an animal, food to eat)

    O gato miava alto para que eu o tratasse.

    The cat was meowing loudly so that I would feed him.

• (to apply medical care to): curar, medicar
• (to negotiate with): acertar, combinar, marcar, negociar (com)
• (to address): dirigir-se a
• (to behave): comportar-se, portar-se, proceder
• (to care for): cuidar de
• (to be about): ser sobre
• (to talk about): discutir sobre, falar sobre, discorrer sobre
• (to feed): alimentar, nutrir, dar de comer a/para

• tratável

• “tratar”, in Dicionário Aulete Digital (in Portuguese), Rio de Janeiro: Lexikon Editora Digital, 2008–2026
• “tratar”, in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Lisbon: Priberam, 2008–2026

• tractar (obsolete)

Semi-learned borrowing from Latin tractāre (“to drag; to handle; to practice”),^[1] from tractus (“dragged”), perfect passive participle of trahō (“to drag; to extract”). Cf. also the obsolete or regional inherited doublet trechar (“to cut open and salt eels being dried and cured”). Cognate to English treat and Portuguese tratar.

• IPA^(key): /tɾaˈtaɾ/ [t̪ɾaˈt̪aɾ]
• Rhymes: -aɾ
• Syllabification: tra‧tar

tratar (first-person singular present trato, first-person singular preterite traté, past participle tratado)

1. (transitive) to treat (to handle, behave toward in a specific way)
2. (transitive) to treat (to apply medical care)
3. (transitive) to treat (to submit to a chemical action)
4. (transitive) to address, to refer to as
5. (intransitive) to deal with [with con]
6. (intransitive) to try, to seek, to attempt, to strive, to endeavor [with de (+ infinitive) ‘to do something’]

   Synonyms: intentar, probar

7. (reflexive) to be about, to concern [with de]

   No se trata de ti todo el tiempo.

   It's not about you all the time.

   • 2020 October 11, Alejandro Ciriza, El País‎^[2]:

     Se trata de su victoria 100 en París

     It's victory number 100 in Paris

     (literally, “It's about his 100th victory in Paris”)

• “tratar”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8.1, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 15 December 2025
• “tratar”, in Diccionario panhispánico de dudas [Panhispanic Dictionary of Doubts] (in Spanish), 2nd edition, Royal Spanish Academy; Association of Academies of the Spanish Language, 2023, →ISBN

Retrieved from "https://en.wiktionary.org/w/index.php?title=tratar&oldid=89741733"