triple

[trip-uhl]

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.

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

/ 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

noun

1. a threefold amount

2. a group of three

verb

1. to increase or become increased threefold; treble

Other Word Forms

• triply adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of triple¹

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of triple¹

C16: from Latin triplus

Example Sentences

Public funding for the Royal Household has tripled in real terms since 2012, official figures show.

Read more on BBC

It would also undermine America’s ability to deter China, which has more than tripled its arsenal in the past five years and is increasingly collaborating with Moscow.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Mali, with a population of 21 million over an area triple the size of California, looks increasingly like it could fall first.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

It has roughly tripled in assets in the past five years, and now consists of more than $1.7 trillion.

Read more on Barron's

And because of their higher birth rates and the below-replacement birth rates among non-Orthodox American Jews, the Orthodox could triple their share of the U.S.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• threefold 

When To Use

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.