Meaning & use
triune
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Meaning
adjectivebefore a nounreligion
Made up of three parts or persons that form a single whole, especially in speaking about the Christian Trinity.
Grammar: Usually before a noun: a triune God.
Patterns
- a triune God
- triune nature
The creed describes a triune God.
The scholar wrote about the triune nature of the divine.
Some philosophers described the mind as a triune structure of thought, feeling and will.
Common combinations
- triune God
- Christians speak of a triune God in three persons.
- triune nature
- The sermon explored the triune nature of faith.
- triune brain
- The triune brain model has been criticized by scientists.
- triune being
- The poem imagines a triune being of body, mind and spirit.
Synonyms and how they differ
- threefold
- Threefold simply means having three parts or happening three times, and does not carry the idea of one unified being.
- tripartite
- Tripartite means divided into three parts, often in agreements, while triune insists the three are one.
- trinitarian
- Trinitarian is used only about Trinity doctrine, whereas triune can describe other things.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: triune or triumvirate?
triune vs triumvirate
A triumvirate is a group of three people who share power, but they do not form a single being as in triune.
Practice
Which phrase best matches the idea of triune?
Choose one answer.
Triune means three in one. The other options either separate the parts, only count repetitions, or involve two parts.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “triune”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.