a. Bot. [f. TRI- + PINNATE.] Of a leaf: Triply pinnate; having leaflets pinnately arranged on tertiary petioles similarly arranged: see PINNATE a. 1 a, and cf. BIPINNATE. (Abbrev. 3-pinnate.)
1760. J. Lee, Introd. Bot., III. vi. (1765), 188. Tripinnate, or Triplicato-Pinnate, when a Petiole bears many Folioles, each of which are Bipinnate.
1870. Hooker, Stud. Flora, 170. Daucus Carota; leaves 3-pinnate.
1880. Gray, Struct. Bot., iii. § 4 (ed. 6), 104. Tripinnate or Thrice Pinnate leaves of a regular sort are rare.
So Tripinnated a. in same sense; Tripinnately adv., in a tripinnate manner; Tripinnatifid, Tripinnatisect adjs., triply pinnatifid, or pinnatisect; tripinnately divided half-way, or quite, to the base.
1845. Lindley, Sch. Bot., iv. (1858), 26 b. A[nemone] Pulsatilla (Pasque Flower). Leaves tripinnatifid with linear acute segments.
1847. W. E. Steele, Field Bot., 95. A[donis] autumnalis...; leaves 3-pinnatifid.
1857. Henfrey, Elem. Bot., § 94. Where tripinnatisect leaves have filiform segments, the term dissected is usually employed.
1876. Harley, Royle’s Mat. Med., 583. Leaves tripinnated, with fine capillary segments like those of fennel.
1891. Cent. Dict., Tripinnately.
