treaty

noun

trea·​ty ˈtrē-tē 

plural treaties

1

a

: an agreement or arrangement made by negotiation:

(1)

: a contract in writing between two or more political authorities (such as states or sovereigns) formally signed by representatives duly authorized and usually ratified by the lawmaking authority of the state

(2)

: private treaty

b

: a document in which such a contract is set down

2

: the action of treating and especially of negotiating

Synonyms of treaty

• pact
• convention
• accord

Examples of treaty in a Sentence

a nuclear test ban treaty

in accordance with a treaty between the United States and the tribes of the Pacific Northwest, commercial fishing of certain kinds of salmon is limited to Native Americans

Recent Examples on the Web

While France and Indonesia have not formalized a co-production treaty, Penone emphasizes results over bureaucracy. —Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 29 Nov. 2025

America embraced imports with the North American Free Trade Agreement, a 1994 treaty that lowered trade barriers between the United States and its neighbors, Canada and Mexico. —Daniel De Visé, USA Today, 29 Nov. 2025

Under this part of its founding treaty, all members of the bloc are to treat an attack on one state as an attack on all. —Ellie Cook, MSNBC Newsweek, 27 Nov. 2025

While a succession of treaties and opaque power-sharing deals have determined who rules in Kinshasa, the violence in the eastern hinterlands has never stopped. —Jon Lee Anderson, New Yorker, 24 Nov. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English trete, from Anglo-French treté, from past participle of treter to discuss, treat

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Phrases Containing treaty

• nonaggression pact/treaty
• nonaggression treaty/pact
• peace treaty
• private treaty
• treaty port

Rhymes for treaty

• beati
• beaty
• meaty
• peaty
• smriti
• sweetie
• banditti
• cochiti
• entreaty
• graffiti
• wapiti

Kids Definition

treaty

noun

trea·​ty ˈtrēt-ē 

plural treaties

: an agreement or arrangement made by negotiation

especially : one between two or more states or rulers

Legal Definition

treaty

noun

trea·​ty

plural treaties

1

: the action of treating and especially of negotiating

2

: an agreement or arrangement made by negotiation: as

a

: private treaty

b

: a contract in writing between two or more political authorities (as states or sovereigns) formally signed by representatives duly authorized and usually ratified by the lawmaking authority of the state

the President…shall have power, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, to make treaties

—U.S. Constitution art. II

compare executive agreement

3

: a document embodying a negotiated agreement or contract

4

: an agreement or contract (as between companies) providing for treaty reinsurance

Etymology

Anglo-French treté, from Middle French traité, from Medieval Latin tractatus, from Latin, handling, treatment, from tractare to treat, handle