1425-75;late Middle English < Medieval Latintractātus,Latin: handling, treatment, equivalent to tractā(re) to handle, treat (frequentative of trahere to draw) + -tus suffix of v. action
British Dictionary definitions for tractate
tractate
/ˈtrækteɪt/
noun
1.
a short tract; treatise
2.
(Judaism) one of the volumes of the Talmud
Word Origin
C15: from Latin tractātus, from tractāre to handle; see tractable