trefoil
Americannoun
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any of numerous plants belonging to the genus Trifolium, of the legume family, having usually digitate leaves of three leaflets and reddish, purple, yellow, or white flower heads, comprising the common clovers.
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any of various similar plants.
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Architecture. an ornament composed of three lobes, divided by cusps, radiating from a common center.
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such an ornamental figure used by the Girl Scouts as its official emblem.
adjective
noun
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any of numerous leguminous plants of the temperate genus Trifolium , having leaves divided into three leaflets and dense heads of small white, yellow, red, or purple flowers
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any of various related plants having leaves divided into three leaflets, such as bird's-foot trefoil
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a leaf having three leaflets
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architect an ornament in the form of three arcs arranged in a circle
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of trefoil
1350–1400; Middle English < Anglo-French trifoil < Latin trifolium triple leaf, the three-leaved plant, clover, equivalent to tri- tri- + folium leaf
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.
They added they wanted to encourage the spread of Bird's-foot trefoil to encourage other butterflies and moths.
From BBC ● Jul. 9, 2026
The experiment can be explained in three main steps: First, the synthesis of the trefoil field; then its characterization; and finally, the actual production of valley polarization.
From Science Daily ● Apr. 24, 2024
The trefoil also appeared on big travel bags, and as a print on trousers.
From Seattle Times ● Feb. 25, 2022
The butterfly may thrive in active quarries because its egg-laying plant of choice, birdsfoot trefoil, grows well in the parts that aren’t being excavated, Fartmann says.
From Science Magazine ● Nov. 18, 2021
After a glance round among them Holly went up to Silver, who was feeding with Fiver in a patch of yellow trefoil.
From "Watership Down: A Novel" by Richard Adams
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.
