trio

The word “trio” means a group of three people or things. In plain terms, any set of three — people, musicians, or things — grouped together.

“Trio” is pronounced TREE-oh (/ˈtɹioʊ/ in IPA).

Here is “trio” used in a sentence: “The trio of friends traveled across Europe together.”

Words with a similar meaning to “trio” include threesome, triad, trine, trinity, troika and triumvirate.

“Trio” is a noun.

The word “trio” dates back to around 1700 and comes from Italian. Borrowed from Italian trio in the early 18th century.

“Trio” is a fairly common word in modern English, usually learned at around the B2 level.

“Trio” has 2 distinct senses listed in this dictionary. The most common is: a group of three people or things.

Both refer to a group of three, but "trio" is the everyday word and is especially common for three people or three musicians, while "triad" tends to be more technical or formal, such as a chord of three notes or a set of three related concepts. A trio can play music; a triad is more often an abstract grouping.

A trio is a group of three performers, or a piece written for three, while a quartet is a group of four. The prefixes reflect the numbers, with "tri-" meaning three and "quart-" meaning four.

"Trio" is grammatically singular and takes "a" — "a trio." In American English it usually takes a singular verb ("the trio is playing"), while in British English it may take a plural verb ("the trio are playing") when the members are viewed individually. Its plural is "trios."

A trio can describe any set of three — three people, three musicians, three matching items, or a musical work for three performers. It is often used for recognised groupings, such as a jazz trio or a trio of friends.