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I am racking my brain over Etymonline’s information on the verb “entreat” ― Old French entraiter "to treat," from en- "make" (see en- (1)) + traiter "to treat" (see treat (v.)). I don’t know any Old French. In simple lay man terms, what does “make” + “treat” mean? At first sight, I thought “make” + “treat” meant “make someone a treat”, or “make a treat” for someone or something”, as in this…
I am racking my brain over Etymonline’s information on the verb “entreat” ―
Old French entraiter "to treat," from en- "make" (see en- (1)) + traiter "to treat" (see treat (v.)).
I don’t know any Old French. In simple lay man terms, what does “make” + “treat” mean? At first sight, I thought “make” + “treat” meant “make someone a treat”, or “make a treat” for someone or something”, as in this example ―
One of my favorite things in the whole wide world is to make someone a treat [emphasis mine] that I know they'll love. One of our good friends had a birthday and he loves brownies..
But this meaning feels too modern to be Old French. What’s the right way to construe, and make sense of, this combination of “make” + “treat”?
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