"T" Word Origins

trichiliocosm

Origin

From tri- + chilia- + cosmos, partially calquing Sanskrit त्रिसहस्रमहासहस्रलोकधातु (trisahasramahāsahasralokadhātu, literally “three thousand million world element”).

trick

Latin

From Old Northern French trique, related to Old French trichier, "to cheat or deceive" — ultimately connected to Latin words meaning "to dodge" or "haggle."

tricker

Origin

Derived from trick + -er.

trickery

Origin · 1700

Formed from trick plus the noun suffix -ery, first recorded in the early 18th century.

trickle

Middle English

From Middle English triklen, which grew out of an older word striklen ("to trickle") after speakers misheard where one word ended and the next began — the same kind of slip that gave us "an apron" from "a napron."

trickster

Origin

Built from trick plus the agent suffix -ster (the same ending found in words like gangster and youngster).

tricky

Origin

From trick plus the adjective ending -y.

tricorder

Origin

Coined for Star Trek, blending tri- (its three main scanning functions) with (re)corder.

tricycle

French

From French tricycle, built from tri- ("three") plus cycle.

trident

Latin

From Latin tridens, combining tri- ("three") and dens ("tooth").

tried

Middle English

The past participle of try, from Middle English tried.

trier

Middle English

From Middle English triour, related to try plus the agent suffix -er.

Trieste

Italian

Borrowed from Italian Trieste.

trifecta

Origin

Formed from tri- ("three") plus the ending from (per)fecta, a betting term.

trifle

Old French

From Old French trufle, related to truffe ("deception"); the origin beyond that is uncertain.

trifling

Origin

By surface analysis, trifle + -ing.

trig

Old Norse

From Old Norse tryggr ("loyal, true"), related to the English word true.

trigger

Dutch

Originally "tricker," from Dutch trekker ("pull"), related to trekken ("to pull or drag").

triggerman

Origin

From trigger + man.

trigon

Origin

From Ancient Greek τρίγωνον (trígōnon, “triangle”), neuter substantive of τρίγωνος (trígōnos, “three-sided”), from τρεῖς (treîs, “three”) + γωνία (gōnía, “bend, angle”). Equivalent to tri- + -gon. Doublet of trigone and trigonon.

trigonal

Origin

From Latin trigōnālis (“triangular”), equivalent to trigon + -al.

trigonometry

New Latin · 1610

From Greek trigonon ("triangle") and metron ("measure"), coined in the 1610s as New Latin trigonometria.

trike

Origin

Shortening of tricycle, modelled on bike.

trilby

Origin

Named after the stage adaptation of George du Maurier's novel Trilby, in which characters wore this style of hat.

trilithium

Origin

From tri- + lithium.

trill

Middle English

From Italian trillo/trillare, borrowed into Middle English as trillen.

trilling

Origin

Compare German Drilling.

trillion

French

From French tri- ("three") plus -illion, following the pattern of million and billion.

trilogy

Greek

From Greek trilogia, built from tri- ("three") and -logy.

trim

Old English

From Old English trymman ("to make firm, strengthen"), related to the idea of putting something in proper order.

trimester

Latin

From Latin trimestris ("of three months"), from tres ("three") and mensis ("month").

trimmer

Origin · 1680

From trim plus -er; the "opportunist" sense dates to the 1680s, from the nautical idea of adjusting sails to suit the wind.

trimonthly

Origin

From tri- + monthly.

trinary

Origin

From Late Latin trīnārius (“consisting of three”), from Latin trīni (“triple, three each”) + -ārius.

trine

Latin

From Latin trinus ("threefold"), via Old French trin.

Trini

Origin

A shortened, informal form of "Trinidadian."

Trinidad

Spanish

From Spanish trinidad ("trinity"); Columbus named the island after the Holy Trinity to fulfil a religious vow.

trinity

Latin

From Latin trinitas ("group of three"), from trini ("three each"); it displaced the native Old English word thrines.

trinket

Old French

Origin uncertain, though it may be linked to Old French tryncle ("piece of jewellery").

trinkety

Origin

From trinket + -y.

trio

Italian · 1700

Borrowed from Italian trio in the early 18th century.

trip

Old French

From Middle English trippen ("to step lightly, skip"), possibly via Old French triper or Middle Dutch trippen.

tripartite

Origin

From Latin tripartītus.

tripartition

Origin

Compare French tripartition.

Tripathi

Sanskrit

From Sanskrit tripathin, "one who knows three (Vedic) paths."

tripe

Old French

From Old French tripe ("entrails"), a word of uncertain origin — possibly borrowed from Spanish tripa.

triple

Latin

From Latin triplus, ultimately from the same Proto-Indo-European root as "three" — a doublet of "treble."

triplet

Origin

PIE word *tréyes From triple + -et.