English
trifoly
Trifoly comes from Latin trifolium ‘trefoil, clover’, from folium ‘leaf’, and perhaps ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *bʰleh₃- ‘blossom, flower’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰleh₃-1‘blossom, flower’uncertain
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰolh₃yom1‘leaf’uncertain
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEfolium2‘leaf’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEtrifolium3‘trefoil, clover’
- Englishearliest quotation 1604trifoly3
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Latin folium
- 2 Wiktionary, Latin trifolium
- 3 Wiktionary, English trifoly
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1604, The Pegme at Fen-church: “She vvas crovvned vvith a Chaplet of Trifoly, to…”.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰleh₃-Wiktionary, Latin folium‘blossom, flower’uncertain
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰolh₃yomWiktionary, Latin folium‘leaf’uncertain
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEfoliumWiktionary, Latin trifolium‘leaf’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEtrifoliumWiktionary, English trifoly‘trefoil, clover’
- Englishearliest quotation 1604trifolyWiktionary, English trifoly. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1604, The Pegme at Fen-church: “She vvas crovvned vvith a Chaplet of Trifoly, to…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *bʰleh₃- ‘blossom, flower’
full, blood, blow, flower, blade, bless, bloom, floral, fool, bleed, flora, blossom, flourish, ferret, fleur, florist, flor, belladonna, 53 more
through Proto-Indo-European *bʰolh₃yom ‘leaf’
through Latin folium ‘leaf’
foil, folio, folic, exfoliation, exfoliate, 19 more
through Latin trifolium ‘trefoil, clover’
Today it means
noun Melilot; sweet clover
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “trifoly”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Latin folium, Latin trifolium. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *bʰleh₃- / trifoly