Standard Lemma guide

triage

noun · verb · 8 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • UK: /ˈtɹiː.ɑːʒ/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • US: /ˈtɹi.ɑʒ/
  • US: /tɹiˈɑʒ/
  • rhymes with -ɑːʒ
  • CMU ARPABET: T R AY1 IH0 JH Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

noun

Meaning 1

Assessment or sorting according to quality, need, etc., especially to determine how resources will be allocated.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

The process of sorting patients so as to determine the order in which they will be treated (for example, by assigning precedence according to the urgency of illness or injury).

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

Topics: medicine, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

A facility within a hospital that screens walk-in patients and determines which department or clinic to send them to. (See also triage center.)

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

Topics: medicine, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

noun

Meaning 4

The process of prioritizing bugs to be fixed.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: broadly, countable, uncountable

Topics: computing, engineering, mathematics, natural-sciences, physical-sciences, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

5

noun

Meaning 5

That which is picked out, especially broken coffee beans.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

6

noun

Meaning 6

A marshalling yard, classification yard.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: UK, countable, uncountable

Topics: government, military, politics, rail-transport, railways, transport, war

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

7

verb

Meaning 7

To subject to triage; to prioritize.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: medicine, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

8

noun

Meaning 8

sorting and allocating aid on the basis of need for or likely benefit from medical treatment or food

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: sorting

History

Etymology

Etymology tree French trier Proto-Indo-European *-h2 Proto-Indo-European *-éh2 Proto-Indo-European *-tós Proto-Indo-European *-eh2tos Proto-Italic *-ātos Latin -ātus Proto-Indo-European *-ikos Proto-Italic *-ikos Latin -icus Latin -āticus Latin -āticum Old French -age Middle French -age French -age French triagebor. English triage Borrowed from French triage, from trier (“to sort”).

Across languages

Translations

63 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Bulgarian: сортиране (sortirane) — assessment or sorting according to quality
  • Finnish: lajittelu — assessment or sorting according to quality
  • Finnish: luokittelu — assessment or sorting according to quality
  • Galician: selección — assessment or sorting according to quality
  • German: Auswahl — assessment or sorting according to quality
  • German: Selektierung — assessment or sorting according to quality
  • German: Einschätzung — assessment or sorting according to quality
  • German: Sichtung — assessment or sorting according to quality
  • Hungarian: rangsorolás — assessment or sorting according to quality
  • Hungarian: osztályozás — assessment or sorting according to quality
  • Hungarian: besorolás — assessment or sorting according to quality
  • Hungarian: minősítés — assessment or sorting according to quality
  • Hungarian: válogatás — assessment or sorting according to quality
  • Italian: sorteggio — assessment or sorting according to quality
  • Italian: assegnazione — assessment or sorting according to quality
  • Italian: scelta — assessment or sorting according to quality
  • Japanese: トリアージ (toriāji) — assessment or sorting according to quality
  • Polish: triaż — assessment or sorting according to quality
  • Portuguese: triagem — assessment or sorting according to quality
  • Portuguese: seleção — assessment or sorting according to quality
  • Russian: сортиро́вка (sortiróvka) — assessment or sorting according to quality
  • Russian: триа́ж (triáž) — assessment or sorting according to quality
  • Spanish: sorteo — assessment or sorting according to quality
  • Spanish: selección — assessment or sorting according to quality
  • Bulgarian: триаж (triaž) — the process of sorting patients
  • Catalan: triatge — the process of sorting patients
  • Chinese Mandarin: 分診 /分诊 (fēnzhěn) — the process of sorting patients
  • Dutch: triage — the process of sorting patients
  • Finnish: luokittelu — the process of sorting patients
  • Finnish: potilasluokittelu — the process of sorting patients
  • French: triage médical — the process of sorting patients
  • Galician: triaxe — the process of sorting patients
  • German: Triage — the process of sorting patients
  • German: Ersteinschätzung — the process of sorting patients
  • German: Sichtung — the process of sorting patients
  • Greek: τριάζ (triáz) — the process of sorting patients
  • Greek: διαλογή (dialogí) — the process of sorting patients
  • Hungarian: triázs — the process of sorting patients
  • Hungarian: betegosztályozás — the process of sorting patients
  • Hungarian: előosztályozás — the process of sorting patients
  • Icelandic: þríhyrningur — the process of sorting patients
  • Indonesian: triase — the process of sorting patients
  • Italian: triage — the process of sorting patients
  • Japanese: トリアージ (toriāji) — the process of sorting patients
  • Norwegian Bokmål: triage — the process of sorting patients
  • Polish: triaż — the process of sorting patients
  • Portuguese: triagem — the process of sorting patients
  • Russian: устано́вка очерёдности (ustanóvka očerjódnosti) — the process of sorting patients
  • Russian: триа́ж (triáž) — the process of sorting patients
  • Spanish: triaje — the process of sorting patients
  • Spanish: triage (barbarism) — the process of sorting patients
  • Turkish: triaj — the process of sorting patients
  • Dutch: triëren — to prioritize
  • Finnish: lajittelu — to prioritize
  • French: trier — to prioritize
  • German: auswählen — to prioritize
  • German: bewerten — to prioritize
  • German: sichten — to prioritize
  • Polish: triażować — to prioritize
  • Portuguese: triar — to prioritize
  • Russian: отбрако́вывать (otbrakóvyvatʹ) — to prioritize
  • Spanish: seleccionar — to prioritize
  • Swedish: triagera — to prioritize