quatrefoil

quat·re·foil

 (kăt′ər-foil′, kăt′rə-)

n.

1. A representation of a flower with four petals or a leaf with four leaflets, especially in heraldry.

2. Architecture Tracery or an ornament with four foils or lobes.

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[Middle English quaterfoile : Old French quatre, four; see quatrain + Old French foil, leaf; see foil².]

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

quatrefoil

(ˈkætrəˌfɔɪl) or

quatrefeuille

n

1. (Botany) a leaf composed of four leaflets

2. (Architecture) architect a carved ornament having four foils arranged about a common centre, esp one used in tracery

[C15: from Old French, from quatre four + -foil leaflet; compare trefoil]

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

quat•re•foil

(ˈkæt ərˌfɔɪl, ˈkæ trə-)

n.

1. a leaf composed of four leaflets.

2. an architectural ornament composed of four lobes, separated by cusps, radiating from a common center.

[1375–1425; Middle English < Middle French quatre four + -foil (as in trefoil)]

Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.