cinquefoil
[ singk-foil ]
/ ˈsɪŋkˌfɔɪl /
noun
any of several plants belonging to the genus Potentilla, of the rose family, having yellow, red, or white five-petaled flowers, as P. reptans (creeping cinquefoil), of the Old World, or P. argentea (silvery cinquefoil), of North America.
Also called quinquefoil, quintefoil. Architecture.
a panellike ornament consisting of five lobes, divided by cusps, radiating from a common center.
Heraldry.
a charge in the form of a five-leaved clover.
Origin of cinquefoil
1375–1425; late Middle English
sink foil < Middle French
cincfoille < Latin
quīnque folia five leaves, translation of Greek
pentáphyllon
Words nearby cinquefoil
cinque ports,
cinque terre,
cinquecentist,
cinquecento,
cinquedea,
cinquefoil,
cintra,
cinzano,
cinéma vérité,
cio,
cion
Example sentences from the Web for cinquefoil
British Dictionary definitions for cinquefoil
cinquefoil
/ (ˈsɪŋkˌfɔɪl) /
noun
any plant of the N temperate rosaceous genus Potentilla, typically having five-lobed compound leaves
an ornamental carving in the form of five arcs arranged in a circle and separated by cusps
heraldry
a charge representing a five-petalled flower
Word Origin for cinquefoil
C13
sink foil, from Old French
cincfoille, from Latin
quinquefolium plant with five leaves, translating Greek
pentaphullon from
pente five +
phullon leaf