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Glite Dictionary
trifoliolate leaf

trifoliolate leaf

8.4
A leaf divided into three small leaf parts attached to one stem
  • noun
  • /ˌtraɪˈfoʊliəˌleɪt liːf/
  • Specialized
translation icon : hoja trifoliada
  • Each trifoliolate leaf consists of three distinct leaflets attached to a single stem.

Examples

  • The clover is a common plant with a trifoliolate leaf.

  • Many plants, like clover, have a trifoliolate leaf structure.

  • Botanists easily identified the species by its trifoliolate leaf structure.

  • The trifoliolate leaf is characteristic of this plant species.

  • Botanists easily identified the species by its trifoliolate leaf structure.

  • Each trifoliolate leaf consists of three distinct leaflets attached to a single stem.

  • The clover is a common plant with a trifoliolate leaf.

Synonyms

compound leaf
vstrifoliolate leaf
  • Specialized
5.4

A flat plant part divided into several small leaflets joined to one stalk

specifies the case with exactly three leaflets

Surface Forms

trifoliolate leaf singular
trifoliolate leaves plural

Morphology

trifoliolate + leaf

The adjective 'trifoliolate' explicitly means 'having three leaflets' and 'leaf' is the noun for the photosynthetic organ, so the compound meaning 'a leaf divided into three distinct leaflets' is directly and transparently derived from the constituents. The morphological components (tri- / three + foliolate / leaflets) and the standard adjective+noun composition are cross-linguistically regular, so a learner who knows the parts will readily understand the MWE.

Etymology

Trifoliolate leaf is the name for a leaf made of three small parts on one stem. The parts are tri (three) and leaflet ('small leaf'), so it means 'a leaf divided into three leaflets'.