entreat

Etymology

From Middle English entreten, from Anglo-Norman entretier, from Old French entraiter, from en- + traiter.

verb

1. To treat with, or in respect to, a thing desired; hence, to ask for earnestly.
2. To beseech or supplicate (a person); to prevail upon by prayer or solicitation; to try to persuade.
   It were a fruitless attempt to appease a power whom no prayers could entreat. 1789, John Rogers, The Nature and Influence of the Fear of God (sermon)
   One heart / Tenderly beating / Ever entreating / Constant and true 1937, Frank Churchill and Leigh Harline, “One Song”, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Walt Disney
3. (obsolete) To invite; to entertain.
4. (obsolete) To treat or discourse; hence, to enter into negotiations, as for a treaty.
5. (obsolete, intransitive) To make an earnest petition or request.
6. (obsolete, transitive) To treat, or conduct toward; to deal with; to use.

noun

1. An entreaty.
   Let my entreats of Love prevail so far, / When for your happinesse they spoken are: […] 1661, Samuel Pordage, Mundorum Explicatio
   In the Muslim world, the most compelling and decisive books are those full of confessions written on the flesh of victims, and the most earnest prayers are the entreats for mercy screamed in pain and anguish at the tormentors and flesh and thought. 2006, Khaled Abou El Fadl, The Search for Beauty in Islam: A Conference of the Books, Rowman & Littlefield, page 236