trivium

American  

[triv-ee-uhm] / ˈtrɪv i əm /

noun

1. (during the Middle Ages) the lower division of the seven liberal arts, comprising grammar, rhetoric, and logic.

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trivium British  

/ ˈtrɪvɪəm /

noun

1. (in medieval learning) the lower division of the seven liberal arts, consisting of grammar, rhetoric, and logic Compare quadrivium

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Etymology

Origin of trivium

1795–1805; < Medieval Latin, special use of Latin trivium public place, literally, place where three roads meet. See trivial

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

trivium

She went on to write a PhD dissertation on the effect of formal rhetoric on Shakespeare’s language, and remained an evangelist for the use of the trivium in education.

From "Words Like Loaded Pistols" by Sam Leith

The three arts of the trivium relate to the mind, and the four of the quadrivium to matter.

From "Words Like Loaded Pistols" by Sam Leith

He doubted "that the curriculum of any modern university shows so clear and generous a comprehension of what is meant by culture as this old trivium and quadrivium did."

From Education: How Old The New by James J. Walsh

Here, he taught the trivium and quadrivium—grammar, rhetoric, dialectic, and arithmetic, music, geometry, and astronomy—the seven arts.

From The Revival of Irish Literature Addresses by Sir Charles Gavan Duffy, K.C.M.G, Dr. George Sigerson, and Dr. Douglas Hyde by Charles Gavan Duffy

After completing the trivium, those who wished for higher culture studied the quadrivium.

From History of Education by Levi Seeley

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