entreat

The word "entreat" entered English in the late 14th century from the Anglo-French entretier, which itself was formed from the prefix en- (meaning "in") and the verb traitier ("to treat, handle"). The core Latin ancestor is tractare, a frequentative form of trahere ("to draw, pull"), which carried the sense of handling or managing a matter. The semantic evolution is clear: to "entreat" someone is to "handle" or "manage" a situation by putting oneself earnestly into a state of negotiation or pleading. Thus, the literal idea of "handling in" evolved into the modern abstract meaning of making an earnest and urgent request.

Structure: en + treat - en: A prefix of Latin origin via French, meaning "in, into, to put into a state." - treat: From Old French traitier, meaning "to handle, manage, negotiate," from Latin tractare ("to handle, manage").