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trefoil definition

tre·foil (trē′fo̵il′)

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
  2. any ornamental figure resembling a threefold leaf

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

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2009 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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