treble

• POS: Adjective, Noun, Verb (usu participle)
• HYPHEN: tre=ble

CIDE DICTIONARY

treble, a. [OE. treble threefold, OF. treble, treible, L. triplus. See Triple.].

•  Threefold; triple.  [1913 Webster]

  "A lofty tower, and strong on every side
  With treble walls."  [1913 Webster]
•  Acute; sharp; as, a treble sound.  [1913 Webster]

treble, adv. 

 Trebly; triply.  J. Fletcher.  [1913 Webster]

treble, n. [“ It has been said to be a corruption of triplum [Lat.], a third part, superadded to the altus and bassus (high and low).” Grove.].

 The highest of the four principal parts in music; the part usually sung by boys or women; soprano.  [1913 Webster]
" This is sometimes called the first treble, to distinguish it from the second treble, or alto, which is sung by lower female voices."  [1913 Webster]

treble, v. t. 

•  To make thrice as much; to make threefold.  Tennyson.  [1913 Webster]
•  To utter in a treble key; to whine.  [1913 Webster]

  "He outrageously
  (When I accused him) trebled his reply."  [1913 Webster]

treble, v. i. 

 To become threefold.  Swift.  [1913 Webster]

OXFORD DICTIONARY

treble, adj., n., & v.
--adj.
1 a threefold. b triple. c three times as much or many (treble the amount).
2 (of a voice) high-pitched.
3 Mus. = SOPRANO (esp. of an instrument or with ref. to a boy's voice).
--n.
1 a treble quantity or thing.
2 Darts a hit on the narrow ring enclosed by the two middle circles of a dartboard, scoring treble.
3 a Mus. = SOPRANO (esp. a boy's voice or part, or an instrument). b a high-pitched voice.
4 the high-frequency output of a radio, record-player, etc., corresponding to the treble in music.
5 a system of betting in which the winnings and stake from the first bet are transferred to a second and then (if successful) to a third.
6 Sport three victories or championships in the same game, sport, etc.
--v.
1 tr. & intr. make or become three times as much or many; increase threefold; multiply by three.
2 tr. amount to three times as much as.

Idiom

treble chance a method of competing in a football pool in which the chances of winning depend on the number of draws and home and away wins predicted by the competitors. treble clef a clef placing G above middle C on the second lowest line of the staff. treble rhyme a rhyme including three syllables.

Derivative

trebly adv. (in sense 1 of adj.).

Etymology

ME f. OF f. L triplus TRIPLE

THESAURUS

treble

accompaniment, air, alto, aria, baritone, bass, basso continuo, basso ostinato, bassus, bourdon, bravura, burden, canto, cantus, cantus figuratus, cantus planus, chest voice, choral, choric, coloratura, continuo, contralto, countertenor, cube, descant, dramatic, drone, drone bass, falsetto, figured bass, ground bass, head register, head tone, head voice, heroic, high, high-pitched, high-sounding, high-toned, hymnal, lay, line, liturgical, lyric, male alto, measure, melodia, melodic line, melody, mezzo-soprano, multiply by three, note, operatic, part, piercing, piping, plain chant, plain song, prick song, psalmic, psalmodial, psalmodic, refrain, sacred, sharp, shrill, singing, solo, solo part, song, soprano, soprano part, strain, tenor, tern, ternal, ternary, ternate, thin, thorough bass, three-ply, threefold, trilogic, trinal, trine, triple, triplex, triplicate, tune, undersong, vocal, voce, voce di petto, voce di testa, voice, voice part

ROGET THESAURUS

treble

Triplication

VB treble, triple, triplicate, cube.

N triplication, triplicity, trebleness, trine, treble, triple, tern, ternary, triplicate, threefold, trilogistic, third, trinal, trine, three times, three fold, thrice, in the third place, thirdly, trebly.

Stridor

N stridor, creak, creaking, discord, stridor, roughness, sharpness cacophony, cacoepy, acute note, high note, soprano, treble, tenor, alto, falsetto, penny trumpet, voce di testa, creaking, stridulous, harsh, coarse, hoarse, horrisonous, rough, gruff, grum, sepulchral, hollow, sharp, high, acute, shrill, trumpet-toned, piercing, ear-piercing, high-pitched, high-toned, cracked, discordant, cacophonous.