treble
Americanadjective
-
threefold; triple.
-
Music.
-
of or relating to the highest part in harmonized music; soprano.
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of the highest pitch or range, as a voice part, voice, singer, or instrument.
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high in pitch; shrill.
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noun
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trebles
plural
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Music.
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the treble or soprano part.
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a treble voice, singer, or instrument.
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a high or shrill voice or sound.
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the highest-pitched peal of a bell.
verb (used with or without object)
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trebles,
present (3rd person singular)
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trebled,
past participle, past
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trebling
present participle
adjective
-
threefold; triple
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of, relating to, or denoting a soprano voice or part or a high-pitched instrument
noun
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three times the amount, size, etc
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a soprano voice or part or a high-pitched instrument
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the highest register of a musical instrument
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-
the high-frequency response of an audio amplifier, esp in a record player or tape recorder
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a control knob on such an instrument by means of which the high-frequency gain can be increased or decreased
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Leisure:Bell-ringing the lightest and highest bell in a ring
-
-
the narrow inner ring on a dartboard
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a hit on this ring
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verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
treblesimple
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treblessimple
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have trebledperfect
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has trebledperfect
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am treblingprogressive
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are treblingprogressive
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is treblingprogressive
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have been treblingperfect progressive
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has been treblingperfect progressive
Past
-
trebledsimple
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had trebledperfect
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was treblingprogressive
-
were treblingprogressive
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had been treblingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of treble
1275–1325; (adj. and noun) Middle English < Middle French < Latin triplus triple; (v.) Middle English treblen, derivative of the adj.
Explanation
Something that's treble has three parts or sections. You could describe a tricycle as a treble wheeled vehicle. You can use the adjective treble to mean "triple," either because it's three times as large, or has three components. If you watch three movies in a row at a theater, you can call it a treble feature. A three-headed monster can also be described as treble headed. Another meaning of treble is a high-pitched singing voice, especially a boy's. Treble comes from the Latin word triplus, or "threefold."
Vocabulary lists containing treble
"The Tempest," Vocabulary from Acts 1 and 2
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Excerpt from "As You Like It"
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Part 2 Vocabulary (Unit 3)
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
New Jersey Attorney General Jennifer Davenport is seeking treble damages, a court order barring the alleged anticompetitive practices and preliminary injunctive relief to prevent Amazon from terminating additional DSPs during the litigation.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 4, 2026
New Jersey Attorney General Jennifer Davenport seeks treble damages and a court order to bar the alleged anticompetitive practices.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 4, 2026
But Liman denied Lively’s request for treble and punitive damages, concluding that the procedural mechanism her lawyers used permitted recovery of attorneys fees and costs but not broader financial penalties.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 12, 2026
It was the first win of a potential English treble, with Crystal Palace's Conference League final against Rayo Vallecano next week ahead of Arsenal's Champions League showdown with Paris St-Germain on 30 May.
From BBC ● May 20, 2026
Instruments with ranges that do not fall comfortably into either bass or treble clef may use a C clef or may be transposing instruments.
From "Understanding Basic Music Theory" by Catherine Schmidt-Jones and Russel Jones
Since it first became achievable in 1960, to become champions of England, conquer Europe and win the FA Cup and League Cup in the same campaign, there have been four different trebles.
From BBC ● Feb. 3, 2026
Yet none of those trebles came quicker than the 13 minutes and 54 seconds Omar Marmoush took to get his first City hat-trick in the 4-0 win over Newcastle.
From BBC ● Feb. 15, 2025
If trebles are for show and doubles for dough, he has both bases covered.
From BBC ● Jan. 4, 2025
Defeat ended City’s bid to become the first English team to win back-to-back Champions League titles and its pursuit of successive trebles.
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 17, 2024
Ignatius lis-tened to the bloodcurdling little trebles and giggles and gloated in his dark lair.
From "A Confederacy of Dunces" by John Kennedy Toole
During the last decade, the number of these "very hot" days more than trebled compared with the 1961-1990 average, according to the Met Office.
From BBC ● May 22, 2026
Cutting funding will see the end of a long upward trend, with the Sovereign Grant having almost trebled in real terms, taking into account inflation, in the 14 years since the grant was introduced.
From BBC ● May 14, 2026
More positively, Ahmed assumes $200 million of costs will be removed by FY 2027 as WiseTech cuts a workforce that trebled in size over three years.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 26, 2026
Last week he told the BBC's Radio Scotland Breakfast programme that he had pre-booked seven hotels but that number has now more than trebled to 22.
From BBC ● Dec. 4, 2025
I rejoiced inexpressibly, but my rejoicing is doubled and trebled since the receipt of your distressing news this morning.
From Fairies Afield by Molesworth, Mrs. (Mary Louisa)
Amsterdam, writes Mr. Mikhail, was “one of the most significant global metropolises” of the 17th century, its population trebling between 1585 and 1622.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 19, 2026
The number of Indians investing through SIPs has soared past 100 million, nearly trebling from 34 million five years ago.
From BBC ● Mar. 5, 2025
But at the same time, they say they will accelerate the rollout of renewables - trebling offshore wind, for example - and will approve new small “modular” nuclear power stations.
From BBC ● Jun. 12, 2024
In July 2022, there were 21,246 outdoor fires - nearly trebling the previous July's figure.
From BBC ● Sep. 28, 2023
People swarming in, cities doubling and trebling in numbers of inhabitants, while the fiscal guardians groan over the increasing weight of improvements and the need to care for a large new spate of indigents.
From "Travels with Charley in Search of America" by John Steinbeck
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
