cinquefoil
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cinque·foil
(sĭngk′foil′, săngk′-)n.
1. Any of various herbs or shrubs chiefly of the genus Potentilla of the rose family, native to northern temperate regions and having yellow or sometimes white or red flowers and compound leaves that in some species bear five leaflets. Also called potentilla.
2. Architecture A design having five sides composed of converging arcs, usually used as a frame for glass or a panel.
[Middle English cinkfoil : cink, five; see cinque + foil, leaf (translation of Old French quintefeuille, from Latin quīnquefolium, translation of Greek pentaphullon); 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.
cinquefoil
(ˈsɪŋkˌfɔɪl)n
1. (Plants) any plant of the N temperate rosaceous genus Potentilla, typically having five-lobed compound leaves
2. (Architecture) an ornamental carving in the form of five arcs arranged in a circle and separated by cusps
3. (Heraldry) heraldry a charge representing a five-petalled flower
[C13 sink foil, from Old French cincfoille, from Latin quinquefolium plant with five leaves, translating Greek pentaphullon from pente five + phullon leaf]
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
cinque•foil
(ˈsɪŋkˌfɔɪl)n.
1. any of several plants belonging to the genus Potentilla, of the rose family, having yellow, red, or white five-petaled flowers.
2. an architectural ornament consisting of five lobes, separated by cusps, radiating from a common center.
[1375–1425; late Middle English sink foil < Middle French cincfoille < Latin quīnque folia five leaves]
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
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| Noun | 1. |  cinquefoil - any of a numerous plants grown for their five-petaled flowers; abundant in temperate regions; alleged to have medicinal propertiesgenus Potentilla, Potentilla - chiefly perennial northern hemisphere herbs and shrubs: cinquefoil goose-tansy, Potentilla anserina, silverweed, goose grass - low-growing perennial having leaves silvery beneath; northern United States; Europe; Asia |
| 2. | cinquefoil - an ornamental carving consisting of five arcs arranged in a circle carving - a sculpture created by removing material (as wood or ivory or stone) in order to create a desired shape |
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