tricorn

American  

[trahy-kawrn] / ˈtraɪ kɔrn /

adjective

1. having three horns or hornlike projections; three-cornered.

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noun

1. Also tricorne. a hat with the brim turned up on three sides.

tricorn British  

/ ˈtraɪˌkɔːn /

noun

1. a cocked hat with opposing brims turned back and caught in three places

2. an imaginary animal having three horns

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adjective

1. having three horns or corners

Etymology

Origin of tricorn

1750–60; < Latin tricornis having three horns, equivalent to tri- tri- + corn ( ū ) horn + -is adj. suffix

Explanation

A tricorn is an old-fashioned men's hat with three points, or corners. If you've ever seen the famous portrait of George Washington crossing the Delaware River, you know just what a tricorn looks like. The first few United States presidents wore tricorns, which became less popular toward the end of the eighteenth century. Before that, European men favored them because their turned-up brims kept rain off their faces and shoulders. The Greek word for "three" is treis, the root of the tri part of tricorn. Corn is in this example related to corner, and both words come from the Latin cornu, or "horn."

Example Sentences

His wool coat trailed behind him and his auburn hair was set into four exacting curls beneath a tricorn hat.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 16, 2026

Bellowing "Silence, everyone!" to terrified parliamentarians, the man with a bushy moustache and shiny tricorn quickly caught the public's attention in an image engraved on the nation's collective memory.

From Barron's • Feb. 25, 2026

He was popularized by 1980s pop star Adam Ant, who donned a frock coat and tricorn hat and had a hit with Turpin’s famous slogan, “Stand and Deliver.”

From Seattle Times • Feb. 28, 2024

I don my tricorn hat and declare this "poppycock."

From Salon • Jun. 3, 2022

She flung it wide again, standing this time fully dressed, a gilt-edged tricorn on her head, and in her hands riding-whip and gloves.

From The Reckoning by Chambers, Robert W. (Robert William)