Noah Webster’s 1828 Dictionary

TRIDENTATE — TRIQUETROUS

TRIDENTATE, a. [L. tres and dens, tooth.] Having three teeth.

TRIDIAPASON, n. [tri and diapason.] In music, a triple octave or twenty second.

TRIDING. [See Trithing.]

TRIDODECAHEDRAL, a. [Gr. three, and dodecahedral.]

In crystallography, presenting three ranges of faces, one above another, each containing twelve faces.

TRIDUAN, a. [L. triduum; tres and dies, day.] Lasting three days, or happening every third day. [Little used.]

TRIENNIAL, a. [L. triennis, triennium; tres, three, and annus, year.]

1. Continuing three years; as triennial parliaments.

2. Happening every three years; as triennial elections. Triennial elections and parliaments were established in England in 1695; but these were discontinued in 1717, and septennial elections and parliaments were adopted, which still continue.

TRIENNIALLY, adv. Once in three years.

TRIER, n. [from try.] One who tries; one who makes experiments; one who examines any thing by a test or standard.

1. One who tries judicially; a judge who tries a person or cause; a juryman. [See Trior.]

2. A test; that which tries or approves.

TRIERARCH, n. [Gr. a trireme, and a chief.] In ancient Greece, the commander of a trireme; also, a commissioner who was obliged to build ships and furnish them at his own expense.

TRIETERICAL, a. [L. trietericus; tres, three, and Gr. year.]

Triennial; kept or occurring once in three years. [Little used.]

TRIFALLOW, v.t. [L. tres, three, and fallow.] To plow land the third time before sowing.

TRIFID, a. [L. trifidus; tres, three, and findo, to divide.]

In botany, divided into three parts by linear sinuses with strait margins; three-cleft.

TRIFISTULARY, a. [L. tres and fistula, a pipe.] Having three pipes.

TRIFLE, n. A thing of very little value or importance; a word applicable to any thing and every thing of this character.

With such poor trifles playing.

Moments make the year, and trifles, life.

Trifles

Are to the jealous confirmations strong.

TRIFLE, v.i. To act or talk without seriousness, gravity, weight or dignity; to act or talk with levity.

They trifle, and they beat the air about nothing which toucheth us.

1. To indulge in light amusements.

To trifle with, to mock; to play the fool with; to treat without respect or seriousness.

To trifle with, to spend in vanity; to waste.

To trifle away, to no good purpose; as, to trifle with time, or to trifle away time; to trifle with advantages.

TRIFLE, v.t. To make of no importance. [Not in use.]

TRIFLER, n. One who trifles or acts with levity.

TRIFLING, ppr. Acting or talking with levity, or without seriousness or being in earnest.

1. a. Being of small value or importance; trivial; as a trifling debt; a trifling affair.

TRIFLING, n. Employment about things of no importance.

TRIFLINGLY, adv. In a trifling manner; with levity; without seriousness or dignity.

TRIFLINGNESS, n. Levity of manners; lightness.

1. Smallness of value; emptiness; vanity.

TRIFLOROUS, a. [L. tres, three, and flos, floris, flower.] Three-flowered; bearing three flowers; as a triflorous peduncle.

TRIFOLIATE, a. [L. tres, three, and folium, leaf.] Having three leaves.

TRIFOLIOLATE, a. Having three folioles.

TRIFOLY, n. Sweet trefoil. [See Trefoil.]

TRIFORM, a. [L. triformis; tres and forma.] Having a triple form or shape; as the triform countenance of the moon.

TRIG, v.t. To fill; to stuff. [Not in use.]

1. To stop; as a wheel.

TRIG, a. Full; trim; neat. [Not in use.]

TRIGAMY, n. [Gr. three, and marriage.] State of being married tree times; or the state of having three husbands or three wives at the same time.

TRIGGER, n.

1. A catch to hold the wheel of a carriage on a declivity.

2. The catch of a musket or pistol; the part which being pulled, looses the lock for striking fire.

TRIGINTALS, n. [L. triginta.] Trentals; the number of thirty masses to be said for the dead.

TRIGLYPH, n. [Gr. three, and sculpture.] An ornament in the frieze of the Doric column, repeated at equal intervals. Each triglyph consists of two entire gutters or channels, cut to a right angle, called glyphs, and separated by three interstices, called femora.

TRIGON, n. [Gr. three, and angle.]

1. A triangle; a term used in astrology; also, trine, an aspect of two planets distant 120 degrees from each other.

2. A kind of triangular lyre or harp.

TRIGONAL, TRIGONOUS, a. Triangular; having three angles or corners.

1. In botany, having three prominent longitudinal angles.

TRIGONOMETRICAL, a. Pertaining to trigonometry; performed by or according to the rules of trigonometry.

TRIGONOMETRICALLY, adv. According to the rules or principles of trigonometry.

TRIGONOMETRY, n. [Gr. a triangle, and to measure.] The measuring of triangles; the science of determining the sides and angles of triangles, by means of certain parts which are given. When this science is applied to the solution of plane triangles, it is called plane trigonometry; when its application is to spherical triangles, it is called spherical trigonometry.

TRIGYN, n. [Gr. three, and a female.] In botany, a plant having three pistils.

TRIGYNIAN, a. Having three pistils.

TRIHEDRAL, a. [See Trihedron.] Having three equal sides.

TRIHEDRON, n. [Gr. three, and side.] A figure having three equal sides.

TRIJUGOUS, a. [L. tres, three, and jugum, yoke.] In botany, having three pairs. A trijugous leaf is a pinnate leaf with three pairs of leaflets.

TRILATERAL, a. [L. tres, three, and latus, side.] Having three sides.

TRILITERAL, a. [L. tres, three, and litera, letter.] Consisting of three letters; as a triliteral root or word.

TRILITERAL, n. A word consisting of three letters.

TRILL, n. A quaver; a shake of the voice in singing, or of the sound of an instrument. [See Shake.]

TRILL, v.t. To utter with a quavering or tremulousness of voice; to shake.

The sober-suited songstress trills her lay.

TRILL, v.i. To flow in a small stream, or in drops rapidly succeeding each other; to trickle.

And now and then an ample tear trill’d down

Her delicate cheek.

1. To shake or quaver; to play in tremulous vibrations of sound.

To judge of trilling notes and tripping feet.

TRILLED, pp. Shaken; uttered with rapid vibrations.

TRILLING, ppr. Uttering with a quavering or shake.

TRILLION, n. tril’yun. [a word formed arbitrarily of three, or Gr. million.] The product of a million multiplied by a million, and that product multiplied by a million; or the product of the square of a million multiplied by a million. Thus 1,000,000 x 1,000,000=1,000,000,000,000, and this product multiplied by a million= 1,000,000,000,000,000,000.

TRILOBATE, a. [L. tres and locus.] Having three lobes.

TRILOCULAR, a. [L. tres and locus, a cell.] In botany, three-celled; having three cells for seeds; as a trilocular capsule.

TRILUMINAR, TRILUMINOUS, a. [L. tres and lumen, light.] Having three lights.

TRIM, a. Firm; compact; tight; snug; being in good order. We say of a ship, she is trim, or trim-built; every thing about the man is trim. We say of a person, he is trim, when his body is well shaped and firm; and we say, his dress is trim, when it sits closely to his body and appears tight and snug; and of posture we say, a man or a soldier is trim, when he stands erect. It is particularly applicable to soldiers, and in Saxon, truma is a troop or body of soldiers.

TRIM, v.t.

1. In a general sense, to make right, that is, to put in due order for any purpose.

The hermit trimm’d his little fire.

2. To dress; to put the body in a proper state.

I was trimm’d in Julia’s gown.

3. To decorate; to invest or embellish with extra ornaments; as, to trim a gown with lace.

4. To clip, as the hair of the head; also, to shave; that is, to put in due order.

5. To lop, as superfluous branches; to prune; as, to trim trees.

6. To supply with oil; as, to trim a lamp.

7. To make neat; to adjust.

I found her trimming up the diadem

On her dead mistress--

8. In carpentry, to dress, as timber; to make smooth.

9. To adjust the cargo of a ship, or the weight of persons or goods in a boat, so equally on each side of the center and at each end, that she shall sit well on the water and sail well. Thus we say, to trim a ship or a boat.

10. To rebuke; to reprove sharply; a popular use of the word.

11. To arrange in due order for sailing; as, to trim the sails.

To trim in, in carpentry, to fit, as a piece of timber into other work.

To trip up, to dress; to put in order.

TRIM, v.i. To balance; to fluctuate between parties, so as to appear to favor each.

TRIM, n. Dress; gear; ornaments.

1. The state of a ship or her cargo, ballast, masts, etc., by which she is well prepared for sailing.

Trim of the masts, is their position in regard to the ship and to each other, as near or distant, far forward or much aft, erect or raking.

Trim of sails, is that position and arrangement which is best adapted to impel the ship forward.

TRIMETER, n. A poetical division of verse, consisting of three measures.

TRIMETER, TRIMETRICAL, a. [Gr. three measures.] Consisting of three poetical measures, forming an iambic of six feet.

TRIMLY, adv. Nicely; neatly; in good order.

TRIMMED, pp. Put in good order; dressed; ornamented; clipped; shaved; balanced; rebuked.

TRIMMER, n. One that trims; a timeserver.

1. A piece of timber fitted in.

All the joists and the trimmers for the staircase--

TRIMMING, ppr. Putting in due order; dressing; decorating; pruning; balancing; fluctuating between parties.

TRIMMING, n. Ornamental appendages to a garment, as lace, ribbons and the like.

TRIMNESS, n. Neatness; snugness; the state of being close and in good order.

TRINAL, a. [L. trinus, three.] Threefold.

TRINE, a. Threefold; as trine dimension, that is, length, breadth and thickness.

TRINE, n. [supra.] In astrology, the aspect of planets distant from each other 120 degrees, forming the figure of a trigon or triangle.

TRINE, v.t. To put in the aspect of a trine.

TRINERVATE, a. [L. tres and nervus.] In botany, having three nerves or unbranched vessels meeting behind or beyond the base.

TRINERVE, TRINERVED, a. In botany, a trinerved or three-nerved leaf, has three nerves or unbranched vessels meeting in the base of the leaf.

TRINGLE, n. In architecture, a little square member or ornament, as a listel, reglet, platband and the like, but particularly a little member fixed exactly over every triglyph.

TRINITARIAN, a. Pertaining to the Trinity, or to the doctrine of the Trinity.

TRINITARIAN, n. One who believes the doctrine of the Trinity.

1. One of an order of religious, who made it their business to redeem christians from infidels.

TRINITY, n. [L. trinitas; tres and unus, unitas, one, unity.]

In theology, the union of three persons in one Godhead, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

In my whole essay, there is not any thing like an objection against the Trinity.

TRINKET, n.

1. A small ornament, as a jewel, a ring and the like.

2. A thing of little value; tackle; tools.

TRINOMIAL, a. [L. tres and nomen.] In mathematics, a trinomial root, is a root consisting of three parts, connected by the signs + or -. Thus x+y+z, or a+b-c.

TRINOMIAL, n. A root of three terms or parts.

TRIO, n. A concert of three parts; three united.

TRIOBOLAR, a. [L. triobolaris; tres and obolus.] Of the value of three oboli; mean; worthless. [Not used.]

TRIOCTAHEDRAL, a. [tri and octahedral.] In crystallography, presenting three ranges of faces, one above another, each range containing eight faces.

TRIOCTILE, n. [L. tres, three, and octo, eight.] In astrology, an aspect of two planets with regard to the earth, when they are three octants or eight parts of a circle, that is, 135 degrees, distant from each other.

TRIOR, TRIER, n. [from try.] In law, a person appointed by the court to examine whether a challenge to a panel of jurors, or to any juror, is just. The triors are two indifferent persons.

TRIP, v.t.

1. To supplant; to cause to fall by striking the feet suddenly from under the person; usually followed by up; as, to trip up a man in wrestling; to trip up the heels.

2. To supplant; to overthrow by depriving of support.

3. To catch; to detect.

4. To loose an anchor from the bottom by its cable or buoy-rope.

TRIP, v.i. To stumble; to strike the foot against something, so as to lose the step and come near to fall; or to stumble and fall.

1. To err; to fail; to mistake; to be deficient.

Virgil pretends sometimes to trip.

TRIP, v.i.

1. To run or step lightly; to walk with a light step.

She bounded by and tripp’d so light.

They had not time to take a steady sight.

Thus from the lion trips the trembling doe.

2. To take a voyage or journey.

TRIP, n. A stroke or catch by which a wrestler supplants his antagonist.

And watches with a trip his foe to foil.

1. A stumble by the loss of foot-hold, or a striking of the foot against an object.

2. A failure; a mistake.

Each seeming trip, and each digressive start.

3. A journey; or a voyage.

I took a trip to London on the death of the queen.

4. In navigation, a single board in plying to windward.

5. Among farmers, a small flock of sheep, or a small stock of them. [Local.]

TRIPARTITE, a. [L. tripartitus; tres, three, and partitus, divided; partior.]

1. Divided into three parts. In botany, a tripartite leaf is one which is divided into three parts down to the base, but not wholly separate.

2. Having three corresponding parts or copies; as indentures tripartite.

TRIPARTITION, n. A division by three, or the taking of a third part of any number or quantity.

TRIPE, n.

1. Properly, the entrails; but in common usage, the large stomach of ruminating animals, prepared for food.

2. In ludicrous language, the belly.

TRIPEDAL, a. [L. tres and pes.] Having three feet.

TRIPE-MAN, n. A man who sells tripe.

TRIPENNATE, TRIPINNATE, a. [L. tres and penna or pinna.] In botany, a tripinnate leaf is a species of superdecompound leaf, when a petiole has bipinnate leaves ranged on each side of it, as in common fern.

TRIPERSONAL, a. [L. tres and persona.] Consisting of three persons.

TRIPETALOUS, a. [Gr. three, and leaf.] In botany, three-petaled; having three petals or flower leaves.

TRIPHANE, n. A mineral, spodumene.

TRIPHTHONG, n. [Gr. three, and sound.] A coalition of three vowels in one compound sound, or in one syllable, as in adieu, eye.

TRIPHTHONGAL, a. Pertaining to a triphthong; consisting of a triphthong.

TRIPHYLLOUS, a. [Gr. three, and leaf.] In botany, three-leaved; having three leaves.

TRIPLE, a. [L. triplex, triplus; tres and plico, to fold.]

1. Threefold; consisting of three united; as a triple knot; a triple tie.

By thy triple shape as thou are seen--

2. Treble; three times repeated. [See Treble.]

Triple time, in music, is that in which each bar is divided into three measures or equal parts, as three minims, three crotchets, three quavers, etc.

TRIPLE, v.t. To treble; to make threefold or thrice as much or as many. [Usually written treble.]

TRIPLET, n. [from triple.] Three of a kind, or three united.

1. In poetry, three verses rhyming together.

2. In music, three notes sung or played in the time of two.

TRIPLICATE, a. [L. triplicatus, triplico; tres and plico, to fold.] Made thrice as much; threefold.

Triplicate ratio, is the ratio which cubes bear to each other.

TRIPLICATION, n. The act of trebling or making threefold, or adding three together.

1. In the civil law, the same as sur-rejoinder in common law.

TRIPLICITY, n. [L. triplex.] Trebleness; the state of being threefold.

TRIPLY-RIBBED, a. [triple and rib.] In botany, having a pair of large ribs branching off from the main one above the base, as in the leaves of many species of sunflower.

TRIP-MADAM, n. A plant.

TRIPOD, n. [L. tripus, tripodis; Gr. three, and foot.]

A bench, stool or seat supported by three legs, on which the priest and sibyls in ancient times were placed to render oracles.

TRIPOLI, n. In mineralogy, a mineral originally brought from Tripoli, used in polishing stones and metals. It has a dull argillaceous appearance, but is not compact. It has a fine hard grain, but does not soften by water, or mix with it. It is principally composed of silex.

TRIPOLINE, a. Pertaining to tripoli.

TRIPOS, n. A tripod, which see.

TRIPPED, pp. [from trip.] Supplanted.

TRIPPER, n. One who trips or supplants; one that walks nimbly.

TRIPPING, ppr. Supplanting; stumbling; falling; stepping nimbly.

1. a. Quick; nimble.

TRIPPING, n. The act of tripping.

1. A light dance.

2. The loosing of an anchor from the ground by its cable or buoy-rope.

TRIPPINGLY, adv. Nimbly; with a light nimble quick step; with agility.

Sing and dance it trippingly.

Speak the speech trippingly on the tongue.

TRIPTOTE, n. [Gr. three, and case.] In grammar, a name having three cases only.

TRIPUDIARY, a. [L. tripudium.] Pertaining to dancing; performed by dancing.

TRIPUDIATION, n. [L. tripudio, to dance.] Act of dancing.

TRIPYRAMID, n. [L. tres and pyramis.] In mineralogy, a genus of spars, the body of which is composed of single pyramids, each of three sides, affixed by their base to some solid body.

TRIQUETROUS, a. [L. triquetrus, from triquetra, a triangle.]

Three-sided; having three plane sides.