trefoil

(trēfo̵il′)

noun

    1. any of a number of plants with leaves divided into three leaflets, as the clover, tick trefoil, and certain species of lotus
    2. a flower or leaf with three lobes
  1. any ornamental figure resembling a threefold leaf

Origin: ME treyfoyle < Anglo-Fr trifoil < L trifolium, three-leaved plant < tri-, tri- + folium, a leaf: see foil

See trefoil in American Heritage Dictionary 4

noun
  1. Any of various plants of the genera Trifolium, Lotus, and related genera of the pea family, having compound trifoliate leaves.
  2. An ornament, symbol, or architectural form having the appearance of a trifoliate leaf.

Origin:

Origin: Middle English

Origin: , from Anglo-Norman trifoil

Origin: , from Latin trifolium

Origin: : tri-, tri-

Origin: + folium, leaf; see bhel-3 in Indo-European roots

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