The Spanish verb 'tratar' (meaning 'to treat' or 'to handle') comes from the Latin word 'tractare', which meant 'to handle' or 'manage'. 'Tractare' itself was a frequentative form of the Latin verb 'trahere', meaning 'to pull' or 'drag'. A frequentative form indicates repeated action, so 'tractare' essentially meant 'to keep pulling/handling repeatedly'.

The semantic evolution from 'pulling' to 'handling' to 'treating' shows how physical actions (pulling, handling) gradually extended to more abstract meanings of dealing with or treating people and situations.

Some related Spanish words include 'trato' (treatment, deal), 'tratamiento' (treatment), and 'contrato' (contract). All these words share the basic idea of handling, dealing with, or treating something or someone.

English speakers might recognize the connection to words like 'treat', 'treatment', 'tract' (as in a tract of land that is 'pulled' or 'drawn' out), 'tractor' (a machine that pulls), 'contract' (literally 'pulling together'), and 'abstract' (literally 'pulling away'). All these words can be traced back to the same Latin root 'trahere' meaning 'to pull'.