triangle
nounUK /ˈtɹaɪəŋɡəl/ · US /ˈtɹaɪˌæŋɡəl/
Etymology PIE word *tréyes From Middle English triangle, from Old French triangle, from Latin triangulum, noun use of adjective triangulus (“three-cornered, having three angles”), from trēs (“three”) + angulus (“corner, angle”), equivalent to tri- + -angle.
10 senses
- 1A polygon with three sides and three angles.
- 2A set square.
- 3A percussion instrument made by forming a metal rod into…
- 4A triangular piece of equipment used for gathering the…
- 5A love triangle.
- 6The structure of systems composed with three interrelated…
- 7A draughtsman's square in the form of a right-angled triangle.
- 8A frame formed of three poles stuck in the ground and…
- 9Any of various large papilionid butterflies of the genus…
- 10A triangular formation of railway tracks, with a curve…
Geometry, Mathematics, Sciences A polygon with three sides and three angles.
- The wedge-shaped character was the triangle, the archaic Paleolithic sign of the vulva; the pubic triangle was at the end of the phallic stylus.1981, William Irwin Thompson, The Time Falling Bodies Take to Light: Mythology, Sexuality and the Origins of Culture, London: Rider/Hutchinson & Co., page 22:
Entertainment, Lifestyle, Music A percussion instrument made by forming a metal rod into a triangular shape which is open at one angle. It is suspended from a string and hit with a metal bar to make a resonant sound.
Ball games, Billiards, Games, Hobbies, Lifestyle, Sports A triangular piece of equipment used for gathering the balls into the formation required by the game being played.
A love triangle.
- One of the writers' most pleasing inventions was to treat the triangle love story as comedy.2009, Neil McDonald, Quadrant, November 2009, No. 461 (Volume LIII, Number 11), Quadrant Magazine Limited, page 104
The structure of systems composed with three interrelated objects.
A draughtsman's square in the form of a right-angled triangle.
Historical, Plural normally A frame formed of three poles stuck in the ground and united at the top, to which people were bound for corporal punishment.
- I was flogged in 1840. To this day I feel a pain in the chest from the triangles.1851, Henry Mayhew, London Labour and the London Poor, published 1861:
- But nothing is said as to what we are to do with the negro when we have cut him off from absolute dominion; we are not informed if we may spread him on the triangles as aforetime;1868, “The Week”, in The Nation, volume 6, number 149:
Any of various large papilionid butterflies of the genus Graphium.
Rail transport, Railways, Transport A triangular formation of railway tracks, with a curve on at least one side.
- After turning on the triangle at Jeumont, we set off light engine back to Aulnoye.1961 March, ""Balmore"", “Driving and firing modern French steam locomotives”, in Trains Illustrated, page 147:
- Synonyms
- threeside, trigon, love triangle, menage à trois, △, triangle
- Derived terms
120 terms
abracadabrangle, acute-angled triangle, acute triangle, anal triangle, anterior triangle, anti-triangle, Bermuda Triangle, Bir Tawil Triangle, black triangle, blue triangle, Brocard triangle, Calot's triangle, Cape triangle, carotid triangle, circular triangle, color triangle, colour triangle, combustion triangle, cyclic triangle, cystohepatic triangle, danger triangle, danger triangle of the face, devil's triangle, Devil's Triangle, disclosure triangle, equilateral triangle, eternal triangle, femoral triangle, fire triangle, Floyd's triangle, foretriangle, furry triangle, Gergonne triangle, golden triangle, Golden Triangle, gold triangle, Goualougo Triangle, gyrotriangle, Halaib Triangle, Harberger's triangle, Harberger triangle, hepatobiliary triangle, hepatocystic triangle, ideal triangle, iron triangle, isosceles triangle, Kanizsa triangle, Karpman drama triangle, Koch's triangle, Lenné Triangle, Lithium Triangle, love triangle, Morley triangle, nanotriangle, nasolabial triangle, Nevada Triangle, North Atlantic Triangle, obtuse-angled triangle, obtuse triangle, Pascal's triangle, Penrose triangle, pink triangle, Polynesian Triangle, posterior triangle, pseudotriangle, pubic triangle, purple triangle, Pythagorean triangle, red triangle slug, Reuleaux triangle, right-angled triangle, right triangle, scalene triangle, Scarpa's triangle, set triangle, Sierpinski triangle, sight triangle, South Triangle, spherical triangle, star-triangle relation, sternocostal triangle, subtriangle, Sunni Triangle, superior carotid triangle, tangential triangle, time triangle, triangle choke, triangled, Triangle Flat, triangle-free, triangle group, triangle inequality, triangleness, triangle of death, triangle offense, triangle of life, triangle piercing, triangle pose, Triangler, triangle spider, triangle test, triangle wave, trianglewise, trianglist, triangular, triangular distribution, triangular function, triangular prism, triangulate, triangulation, triangulist, trianguloid, trilliant, trioval, trixel, unified rear triangle, van Arkel–Ketelaar triangle, warning triangle, West Triangle, work triangle