treatise

noun

trea·​tise ˈtrē-təs 

 also  -təz

1

: a systematic exposition or argument in writing including a methodical discussion of the facts and principles involved and conclusions reached

a treatise on higher education

2

obsolete : account, tale

Examples of treatise in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Then, in 1637, the French mathematician René Descartes published his treatise Discourse on the Method (opens a new tab). —Jordana Cepelewicz, Quanta Magazine, 30 Apr. 2025

The best recent commentaries on Marx’s nineteenth-century treatise register the uncanniness of twenty-first-century capitalism. —Benjamin Kunkel, Harpers Magazine, 28 Mar. 2025

In the treatise, the author writes that the poem, which pertains to the birth of the gods, should be taken as an allegory rather than literally. —Teresa Nowakowski, Smithsonian Magazine, 15 Jan. 2025

The movie tries so hard to put forth a sweeping treatise on the paradox of a Black bodybuilder, to be a study of Black masculinity. —Doreen St. Félix, New Yorker, 5 Apr. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English tretis, from Anglo-French tretiz, alteration of tretez, traitet, from Medieval Latin tractatus, from Latin tractare to treat, handle

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for treatise

• fetus
• foetus
• meatus
• thetis
• caritas
• civitas
• cellulitis
• margaritas
• tonsillitis

Kids Definition

treatise

noun

trea·​tise ˈtrēt-əs 

: a book or article examining a subject carefully and completely