triple

American  

[trip-uhl] / ˈtrɪp əl /

adjective

1. threefold; consisting of three parts.

   a triple knot.

2. of three kinds; threefold in character or relationship.

3. three times as great.

4. International Law. tripartite.

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noun

1. an amount, number, etc., three times as great as another.

2. a group, set, or series of three; something threefold; triad.

3. Also called three-base hit.  Baseball. a base hit that enables a batter to reach third base safely.

4. Bowling. three strikes in succession.

5. trifecta.

verb (used with object)

tripled, tripling

1. to make triple.

2. Baseball. to cause to come into home plate by a triple.

   to triple a runner home; to triple a run in.

verb (used without object)

tripled, tripling

1. to become triple.

2. Baseball. to make a triple.

triple British  

/ ˈtrɪpəl /

adjective

1. consisting of three parts; threefold

2. (of musical time or rhythm) having three beats in each bar

3. three times as great or as much

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noun

1. a threefold amount

2. a group of three

verb

1. to increase or become increased threefold; treble

Usage

What is a basic definition of triple? Triple describes something as being made of three parts or being three times as great. Triple also means a set of three. The word triple has several other senses as an adjective, noun, and verb. In any sense, the word triple always has to do with the number three. Triple often describes something that is made of three parts or contains three of something.

• Real-life examples: A triple-layer cake has three layers. A triple homicide involves the murder of three people. A triple-decker bus has three decks of seats. A cardplayer who has triple aces has three cards with aces on them.
• Used in a sentence: My famous triple-layer cake has two layers of chocolate cake and one layer of vanilla cake. 

Triple also often describes something that is three times as great as something else. For example, a couch that is triple the price of another couch costs three times as much.

• Used in a sentence: I sold my bike for $300, which is triple the $100 I paid for it.  

In this sense, triple is used as a verb to mean to multiply something by three. For example, if you triple 2, you get 6 because 2 x 3 = 6.

• Used in a sentence: I think I will triple the tablespoons of sugar in the next batch of lemonade from 2 tablespoons to 6. 

Triple is also a noun that means a set of three. The word triplet is also commonly used in this sense.

• Used in a sentence: The shirts were packaged together in triples of red, white, and blue.

Other Word Forms

• triply adverb

Etymology

Origin of triple

1325–75; Middle English (noun and v.) < Latin triplus (adj.), equivalent to tri- tri- + ( du ) plus duple

Explanation

Triple means to multiply by three. If you triple the number two, you get six, and six is the triple of the number two. In triple, you see tri which means three. You see this prefix in tricycle (three wheels), tripod (three legs), and triplet (three siblings born at the same time). To triple is to increase threefold, just as to double means to increase twofold, quadruple fourfold and quintuple fivefold. In each of these pairs, the former word is Latin based and the latter has Old English origins.

Example Sentences

"It's a triple shock. First, the devastating floods late last year, now soaring fuel prices and then there's an impending drought in some areas," Wignaraja said.

From BBC • Apr. 11, 2026

Stevenson said she doubles the staff on match days and sales are roughly triple the amount of those for nonmatch days.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 11, 2026

These unions are planning a triple strike if agreements are not reached:

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 10, 2026

“I think this is the tip of the iceberg; you could easily double or triple the number of university retirement communities.”

From MarketWatch • Apr. 10, 2026

But there is a continuous gradation from triple systems through loose clusters of a few dozen stars to the great globular clusters, resplendent with a million suns.

From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan

Related Words

• threefold