Adjacent Words

Trice definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

TRICE, v.t. In seamen's language, to haul and tie up by means of a small rope or line.
TRICE, n. A very short time; an instant; a moment.
If they get never so great spoil at any time, they waste the same in a trice.
A man shall make his fortune in a trice.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: a very short time (as the time it takes the eye to blink or the heart to beat); "if I had the chance I'd do it in a flash" [syn: blink of an eye, flash, heartbeat, instant, jiffy, split second, trice, twinkling, wink, New York minute] v
1: raise with a line; "trice a window shade" [syn: trice, trice up]
2: hoist up or in and lash or secure with a small rope [syn: trice, trice up]

Merriam Webster's

I. transitive verb (triced; tricing) Etymology: Middle English trisen, tricen to pull, trice, from Middle Dutch trisen to hoist, from trise windlass Date: 15th century to haul up or in and lash or secure (as a sail) with a small rope II. noun Etymology: Middle English trise, literally, pull, from trisen Date: 15th century a brief space of time ; instant — used chiefly in the phrase in a trice

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. Phrases and idioms: in a trice in a moment; instantly. Etymology: ME trice (v.) pull, haul f. MDu. trisen, MLG trissen, rel. to MDu. trise windlass, pulley

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Trice Trice, v. t. [OE. trisen; of Scand. or Low German origin; cf. Sw. trissa a sheave, pulley, triss a spritsail brace, Dan. tridse a pulley, tridse to haul by means of a pulley, to trice, LG. trisse a pulley, D. trijsen to hoist.] [Written also trise.] 1. To pull; to haul; to drag; to pull away. [Obs.] Out of his seat I will him trice. --Chaucer. 2. (Naut.) To haul and tie up by means of a rope.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Trice Trice, n. [Sp. tris the noise made by the breaking of glass, an instant, en un tris in an instant; probably of imitative origin.] A very short time; an instant; a moment; -- now used only in the phrase in a trice. ``With a trice.'' --Turbervile. `` On a trice.'' --Shak. A man shall make his fortune in a trice. --Young.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

If someone does something in a trice, they do it very quickly. He will sew it up in a trice... She was back in a trice. PHRASE: PHR with v, PHR with cl

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

n. Moment, instant, second, jiffy, flash, twinkling, twinkling of an eye.

Moby Thesaurus

breath, coup, crack, flash, half a jiffy, half a mo, half a second, half a shake, instant, jiff, jiffy, microsecond, millisecond, minute, moment, sec, second, shake, split second, stroke, tick, twink, twinkle, twinkling, twitch, two shakes, wink