<B>trim, </B>verb, <B>trimmed,</B> <B>trimming,</B> adjective, <B>trimmer,</B> <B>trimmest,</B> noun, adverb.<DL COMPACT><DD><I>v.t. </I> <B>1. </B>to make neat by cutting away parts. <BR> <I>Ex. The gardener trimmed the hedge. The barber trimmed my hair.</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>to put in good order; tidy. <BR> <I>Ex. to trim up a room.</I> <DD><B> 3. </B>to dress or shape (lumber). <BR> <I>Ex. The carpenter trimmed the lumber with a plane.</I> <DD><B> 4. </B>to remove (parts that are not needed or not neat) by clipping, pruning, paring, or otherwise removing; cut. <BR> <I>Ex. to trim off dead branches, to trim dead leaves off plants; (Figurative.) to trim one's budget, to trim excess production.</I> (SYN) clip, prune. <DD><B> 5. </B>to decorate; adorn. <BR> <I>Ex. to trim a dress with braid. The children were trimming the Christmas tree.</I> (SYN) deck, garnish. <DD><B> 6. </B>to cause (a vessel) to float on an even keel by arranging the load carried. <DD><B> 7. </B>to distribute or arrange (cargo, ballast, or people) in a vessel to make it float evenly. <DD><B> 8. </B>to adjust the relative buoyancy of (a submarine) by taking or expelling water from tanks in the hull. <DD><B> 9. </B>to balance (an aircraft) so that it maintains level flight with main controls in neutral positions. <DD><B> 10. </B>to adjust (the controls of an aircraft) so as to bring this about. <DD><B> 11. </B>to arrange (sails) to fit the direction of the wind and the course to be sailed. <DD><B> 12. </B>(Figurative.) to change (opinions, positions, or the like) to suit circumstances. <DD><B> 13. </B>(Informal, Figurative.) to defeat, especially overwhelmingly; beat. <DD><B> 14. </B>(Informal, Figurative. ) to cheat; fleece. <DD><B> 15. </B>(Informal, Figurative.) to scold; rebuke. <DD><B> 16. </B>(Obsolete.) to equip. <DD><I>v.i. </I> <B>1. </B>to be or keep in balance, especially to assume a specified position in the water, owing to the distribution of cargo, ballast, or the amount of water in the tanks of a submarine. <DD><B> 2. </B>to adjust sails to fit the direction of the wind and the course of the ship. <DD><B> 3. </B>(Figurative.) to maintain a middle course or balance between opposing interests; adapt oneself to prevailing opinions, conditions, or the like. <DD><I>adj. </I> <B>1. </B>in good condition or order; tidy and pleasing to the eye; neat. <BR> <I>Ex. A trim maid greeted us. The entire family works together to keep a trim house.</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>well designed and maintained. <BR> <I>Ex. a trim little ketch.</I> <DD><B> 3. </B>(Obsolete.) pretty; handsome. <DD><I>noun </I> <B>1. </B>proper condition. <BR> <I>Ex. Is our team in trim for the game?</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>good order. <BR> <I>Ex. to put one's affairs in trim.</I> <DD><B> 3. </B>condition; order. <BR> <I>Ex. that ship is in poor trim for a voyage.</I> <DD><B> 4. </B>a clipping, paring, or dressing to make neat. <BR> <I>Ex. The hedge needs a trim. I asked the barber for a trim.</I> <DD><B> 5. </B>trimming; decoration. <BR> <I>Ex. the trim on a dress.</I> <DD><B> 6. </B>equipment; outfit. <DD><B> 7. </B>the condition, manner, or degree of horizontal balance of a ship in the water. <DD><B> 8. </B>the difference in the draft at the bow from that at the stern of a ship. <DD><B> 9. </B>the fitness or readiness of a ship for sailing as affected by the cargo, masts, sails, and other distribution of weight. <DD><B> 10. </B>the position or angle of the sails in relation to the direction of the wind. <DD><B> 11. </B>the relative buoyancy of a submarine, controlled by taking in or expelling water from tanks in the hull. <BR> <I>Ex. to submerge to 100 feet and correct the trim.</I> <DD><B> 12. </B>the attitude of an aircraft relative to the horizontal plane when it is balanced in flight at a particular altitude with regard to prevailing winds. <DD><B> 13. </B>the visible woodwork inside a building, especially that around doors, windows, and other openings. <DD><B> 14. </B>the woodwork on the outside of a building used as ornamentation or finish. <DD><B> 15. </B>the upholstery, handles, and accessories inside an automobile. <DD><B> 16. </B>the chrome, color scheme, and other decorations on the outside of an automobile. <DD><B> 17. </B>a display in a store window; window display. <DD><B> 18. </B>film that is trimmed away and discarded, as in editing. <DD><I>adv. </I> (Archaic.) in a trim manner; neatly; accurately. adv. <B>trimly.</B> noun <B>trimness.</B> </DL>
<A NAME="trimaran">
<B>trimaran, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> a sailboat with three hulls set side by side. <BR> <I>Ex. Trimarans ... make good family boats because they don't roll and heel in rough weather (Maclean's).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="trimer">
<B>trimer, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> (Chemistry.) <DD><B> 1. </B>a molecule formed by combining three identical smaller molecules. <DD><B> 2. </B>a compound consisting of trimers. </DL>
<A NAME="trimerous">
<B>trimerous, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>having or consisting of three parts. <DD><B> 2. </B>characterized by three parts. <DD><B> 3. </B>(Botany.) (of a flower) having three members in each whorl (generally written <I>3-merous</I>). <DD><B> 4. </B>(Zoology.) having three segments to each tarsus, as certain insects. </DL>
<A NAME="trimester">
<B>trimester, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>a period or term of three months. <DD><B> 2. </B>a division (usually one third) of a school year. </DL>
<A NAME="trimestral">
<B>trimestral, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>consisting of or containing three months. <DD><B> 2. </B>occurring or appearing every three months. </DL>
<A NAME="trimestrial">
<B>trimestrial, </B>adjective. =trimestral.</DL>
<A NAME="trimeter">
<B>trimeter, </B>noun, adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> (Prosody.) <DD><I>noun </I> <B>1. </B>a line of verse having three metrical feet. (Example:) "Below/the light/house top." <DD><B> 2. </B>a verse in Greek or Latin poetry containing three dipodies (six feet). <DD><I>adj. </I> consisting of three feet or three dipodies. </DL>
<A NAME="trimethyl">
<B>trimethyl, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> (Chemistry.) having three methyl radicals. </DL>
<A NAME="trimethylamine">
<B>trimethylamine, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> a colorless gas or liquid with a strong odor of ammonia, used in organic synthesis and as an insect attractant. </DL>
<A NAME="trimetric">
<B>trimetric, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>consisting of three measures; trimeter. <DD><B> 2. </B>(Crystallography.) orthorhombic. </DL>
<A NAME="trimetrical">
<B>trimetrical, </B>adjective. =trimetric.</DL>
<A NAME="trimetricprojection">
<B>trimetric projection,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> (Geometry.) the projection of a solid using different scales at arbitrarily chosen angles for its three dimensions. </DL>
<A NAME="trimetrogon">
<B>trimetrogon, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> a system of photographic mapping from the air, in which one camera photographs the area vertically and two obliquely, operating simultaneously at regular intervals. </DL>
<A NAME="trimmable">
<B>trimmable, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> that can be trimmed. </DL>
<A NAME="trimmer">
<B>trimmer, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>a person or thing that trims. <BR> <I>Ex. a hat trimmer, a window trimmer, a hedge trimmer.</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>(Figurative.) a person who changes his opinions, actions, or positions to suit the circumstances. <BR> <I>Ex. One of the trimmers who went to church and chapel both (Thomas Hardy).</I> (SYN) timeserver. <DD><B> 3. </B>a machine for trimming edges, as of lumber. <DD><B> 4. </B>a long beam or timber to which the end of a header is attached in the frame around a window, chimney, or other opening. </DL>
<A NAME="trimming">
<B>trimming, </B>noun, adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD><I>noun </I> <B>1. </B>anything used to trim or decorate; ornament; decoration. <BR> <I>Ex. trimmings for a Christmas tree, trimming for a dress.</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>(Informal, Figurative.) a defeat, especially an overwhelming defeat; beating. <DD><B> 3. </B>(Informal, Figurative.) a scolding. <DD><B> 4. </B>the act of a person or thing that trims. <DD><I>adj. </I> that trims. <BR><I>expr. <B>trimmings,</B> <DD><B> a. </B>parts cut away in trimming, clipping, paring, or pruning; scraps. </I> <I>Ex. the trimmings of any game ... may be used for making the ... sauce (Alexis Soyer).</I> <DD><B> b. </B>(Informal.) additional or special items needed to make a festive meal or occasion. <BR> <I>Ex. a banquet with all the trimmings. We ate turkey with all the trimmings.</I> </DL>
<A NAME="trimmingtab">
<B>trimming tab,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> an auxiliary surface hinged at the trailing edge of a control surface of an aircraft, used to make small adjustments in stabilizing flight. </DL>
<A NAME="trimolecular">
<B>trimolecular, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> (Chemistry.) of or made out of three molecules. </DL>
<A NAME="trimonthly">
<B>trimonthly, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> occurring once every three months. </DL>
<A NAME="trimorph">
<B>trimorph, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> (Crystallography.) <DD><B> 1. </B>a trimorphic substance. <DD><B> 2. </B>any one of its three different forms. </DL>
<A NAME="trimorphic">
<B>trimorphic, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> existing in or assuming three distinct forms; exhibiting trimorphism. </DL>
<A NAME="trimorphism">
<B>trimorphism, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>the occurrence in three different forms of a crystalline substance. <DD><B> 2. </B>(Zoology.) the occurrence of three forms distinct in color, size, structure, or function, in different individuals of a species. <DD><B> 3. </B>(Botany.) the occurrence of three distinct forms of flowers, leaves, or other parts, on the same plant or in the same species. </DL>
<A NAME="trimorphous">
<B>trimorphous, </B>adjective. =trimorphic.</DL>
<A NAME="trimotor">
<B>trimotor, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> an airplane fitted with three motors. <BR> <I>Ex. The old Ford trimotor, the ... monoplane with the corrugated aluminum sides, was perhaps the first truly modern air transport (Newsweek).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="trimsize">
<B>trim size,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> (Printing.) the size of the pages of a book after their edges have been trimmed; final size of a book's pages. </DL>
<A NAME="trimurti">
<B>Trimurti, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> the three chief Hindu divinities (Brahma, Vishnu, and Siva) as a trinitarian unity, or threefold manifestation of the primary essence of divinity. </DL>
<A NAME="trinacrian">
<B>Trinacrian, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> of Sicily; Sicilian. </DL>
<A NAME="trinal">
<B>trinal, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> composed of three parts; threefold; triple. <BR> <I>Ex. Trinal Unity (Milton).</I> </DL>
