triplet
Americannoun
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one of three children or offspring born at the same birth.
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triplets, three offspring born at one birth.
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any group or combination of three.
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Prosody. three successive verses or lines, especially when rhyming and of the same length; a stanza of three lines.
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Also called tercet. Music. a group of three notes to be performed in the time of two ordinary notes of the same kind.
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an assembled imitation gem with three parts, the center one giving the color, the top and bottom, sometimes genuine, supplying the wearing qualities.
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Genetics. a sequence of three nucleotides; a codon in messenger RNA and an anticodon in transfer RNA.
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Optics. a compound lens in which three lenses are combined.
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triplets, (in some card games) three cards of the same denomination.
noun
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a group or set of three similar things
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one of three offspring born at one birth
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music a group of three notes played in a time value of two, four, etc
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chem a state of a molecule or free radical in which there are two unpaired electrons
Etymology
Origin of triplet
Explanation
When a mammal gives birth to three offspring at the same time, each is a triplet. If you're a triplet, you've got at least two siblings right from the moment you're born. While some triplets are identical (three fetuses from a single egg), it's more likely for triplets to be fraternal (from three separate eggs). In humans, twins are more common than triplets, and multiple births of more than three are even more rare. Triplet can also mean another group of three, like three lines of poetry or three notes of music.
Vocabulary lists containing triplet
It's All in the Family
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Literary Terms, Part I
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Form & Symbolism and Allusion
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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.
We’re all crowding around to see it: the barely visible blur left by the triplet of eruptions that tipped a civilization into collapse.
From Slate • May 8, 2026
"In our published article, we demonstrate that the material NbRe exhibits properties consistent with triplet superconductivity," said Linder.
From Science Daily • Feb. 21, 2026
"Materials that are triplet superconductors are a kind of 'holy grail' in quantum technology, and more specifically quantum computing," explained Linder.
From Science Daily • Feb. 21, 2026
"The fact that triplet superconductors have spin has an important consequence. We can now transport not only electrical currents but also spin currents with absolutely zero resistance," explained Linder.
From Science Daily • Feb. 21, 2026
The major feature shared by rock and roll’s prototypes is the swinging triplet of the piano.
From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall
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.
