triennial

[ trahy-en-ee-uhl ]

See synonyms for triennial on Thesaurus.com

adjective

occurring every three years.
lasting three years.

noun

a third anniversary.
something that appears or occurs every three years.

a period of three years; triennium.

Origin of triennial

First recorded in 1555–65; trienni(um) + -al¹

Other words from triennial

tri·en·ni·al·ly, adverb

Words Nearby triennial

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use triennial in a sentence

The Daily Pic: The ICP's latest triennial expands what cameras can do.
Skyscraper as Contact Sheet | Blake Gopnik | May 17, 2013 | THE DAILY BEAST
For years, the triennial confab has been remarkable mostly for airy oratory by national leaders playing to the crowd back home.
Summit of the Americas in Cartagena Will Be a Minefield for Obama | Mac Margolis | April 13, 2012 | THE DAILY BEAST
The Daily Pic: At the New Museum triennial, artists get ad men to polish communism's image.
V. I. Lenin Meets J. Walter Thompson | Blake Gopnik | March 3, 2012 | THE DAILY BEAST
It is one of the best works in the second New Museum triennial, which this time out has been titled “The Ungovernables.”
Lady Liberty’s Torn Twin | Blake Gopnik | February 28, 2012 | THE DAILY BEAST
Lupton, Cara McCarty, Matilda McQuaid, and Cynthia Smith curated the triennial.
The Curator's Tale | Ellen Lupton | July 7, 2010 | THE DAILY BEAST

He maintained the connexion of church and state, and opposed triennial parliaments and the ballot.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 5, Slice 2 | Various
The war mortality is excluded in every case where it was separately stated in the college triennial, as indicated below.
The Education of American Girls | Anna Callender Brackett
The dreadful disorders of frequent elections have also necessitated a septennial instead of a triennial duration.
Thoughts on the Present Discontents | Edmund Burke
I do not seriously think this Constitution, even to the wrecks of it, could survive five triennial elections.
Thoughts on the Present Discontents | Edmund Burke
In some parishes a triennial or even Septennial visit to the boundaries is considered sufficient.
Curious Church Customs | Various

British Dictionary definitions for triennial

triennial

/ (traɪˈɛnɪəl) /

adjective

relating to, lasting for, or occurring every three years

noun

a third anniversary
a triennial period, thing, or occurrence

Origin of triennial

C17: from Latin triennium

Derived forms of triennial

triennially, adverb

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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