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Prepositions after verbs

treat with, as, like, to or in

Treat changes meaning depending on the structure that follows it. Some combinations are standard, while others are uncommon or context-specific.

Quick answer

Which combinations are standard?

Use treat as for considering someone in a particular way, treat like for behaviour toward someone, treat with for handling or supplying something, and treat in for specialised contexts. Treat to is used before a gift or enjoyable activity.

They treated him as a friend.
She treated us to dinner.
Patients were treated with antibiotics.

Choose the pattern by meaning

These forms are not interchangeable. Choose the construction by meaning, not by which preposition appears most often.

1
treat someone as + role/status

Considering someone in a particular way

Use treat as when assigning a role, category, or status.

The team treated her as an equal.
2
treat someone like + person/thing

Behaving toward someone

Use treat like to describe behaviour toward a person or thing.

Don't treat me like a child.
3
treat someone with + quality

Showing an attitude or quality

Use treat with before words such as respect, kindness, or suspicion.

They treated him with respect.
4
treat someone to + gift/activity

Paying for or giving something enjoyable

Use treat to for meals, trips, and other pleasures.

She treated us to coffee and cake.
5
treat in + field/topic

Specialised or formal use

Treat in appears mainly in academic or formal writing about dealing with a subject area.

The book treats in detail the history of navigation.

See the difference in context

The same subject can take different constructions because each sentence answers a different question.

Construction
Example
Meaning
treat as
The law treats both cases as equal.
Consider or classify in a particular way.
treat like
He treated me like family.
Behave toward someone in a certain manner.
treat with
The doctor treated her with care.
Use a quality, substance, or method while dealing with someone.
treat to
They treated the children to ice cream.
Give someone something enjoyable.
treat in
The article treats in depth the causes of inflation.
Formal expression meaning deal with a subject.

Common mistakes

Some combinations appear in real text but do not mean what learners often assume.

Confusing treat as and treat like

Treat as is about classification; treat like is about behaviour.

✕ They treated him like a manager in the report. ✓ They treated him as a manager in the report.

Using treat to for medical care

Treat to usually means giving pleasure, not medical treatment.

✕ The doctor treated her to antibiotics. ✓ The doctor treated her with antibiotics.

Quick practice

Choose the expression that matches the intended meaning.

1. She always ___ me like a close friend.
2. The company treated the guests ___ lunch.
3. The report treats both groups ___ equal partners.

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Frequently asked questions

Is treat like informal?

It is standard and common in both spoken and written English.

Can treat with mean medical care?

Yes. Doctors may treat patients with medicine or therapy.

Is treat in common?

It is mainly used in formal or academic writing.

tackle by, in, for, with or on? tack-on-onto-to-across, as "tag with" or "tag in"? tailor to, for, from, toward or towards? "taint by" or "taint with"? "take into", "take in" or "take to"? "talk about" or "talk to"? tally with, in, for, up or at? "tap into" or "tap on"? target at, by, for, to or in? tarnish by, in, with, after or as? "taste like", "taste of" or "taste in"?

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