trifoliate orange

noun

: a thorny Chinese tree (Poncirus trifoliata) of the rue family related to the citruses that has trifoliolate leaves and a sour yellow fruit resembling a small orange and that is grown for ornament or hedges or used as a rootstock for citrus fruits

Examples of trifoliate orange in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

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It may have been grafted onto a trifoliate orange rootstock. —

Neil Sperry, San Antonio Express-News, 25 June 2021 An extremely easy-to-grow citrus is the trifoliate orange. —

Howard Garrett, Dallas News, 5 May 2020

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1900, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler

The first known use of trifoliate orange was circa 1900

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“Trifoliate orange.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/trifoliate%20orange. Accessed 23 Nov. 2024.

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