Quick Definition
τρίβολος, ου, ὁ n.m. a thistle
Strong's Definition
from 5140 and 956; properly, a crow-foot (three-pronged obstruction in war), i.e. (by analogy) a thorny plant (caltrop)
KJV Usage: brier, thistle
UBS Dictionary of the Greek New Testament
noun, m. | -ου | τρεῖς + βάλλω
3.17 · Plants · Plants That Are Not Trees
thorn plant, thistle, brier any kind of plant with sharp projections on its stem and/or branches; regarded as useless; symbol of hardship Since plants having thorny projections are almost worldwide in distribution, there is no difficulty in obtaining a satisfactory term for such plants. In some instances, however, a descriptive equivalent may be necessary, for example, ‘plants with piercing points’ or ‘plants that stick into one’s flesh.’
UBS Dictionary of the Greek New Testament © United Bible Societies, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Thayer's Greek Lexicon
τρίβολος, -ov, ὁ, (τρεῖς and βάλλω, [ (cf. βέλος), threepointed ]), α thistle, a prickly wild plant, hurtful to other plants: Mt. vii. 16; Heb. vi. 8. (Arstph., al.; Sept. for ὙΠ, Gen. iii. 18; Hos. x. 8; for D'y3¥ thorns, Prov. xxii. 5.) [Cf. B. D. s. v. Thorns and Thistles, 4; Léw, Aram. Pflanzennamen, ὃ 302.]
Mounce Concise Greek Dictionary
τρίβολος tribolos 2x
pr. three-pronged; a thistle, thorn, Mt. 7:16; Heb. 6:8*
Abbott-Smith Greek Lexicon
τρίβολος, -ου, ὁ
[in LXX: Ge 3:18, Ho 10:8 (דַּרְדַּר), II Ki 12:31 (חָרִיץ), Pr 22:5 (צֵן)* ;]
a thistle: Mt 7:16, He 6:8.†
Moulton & Milligan — Vocabulary of the Greek NT
τρίβολος, ‘thistle,’ Mt 728, Heb 68. In his comment on the latter passage (CC ad 1) Moffatt recalls Philo Leg. A/legor. 250 (ed. Cohn), where with reference to Gen 315 Philo plays with the derivation of the word (like ‘* trefoil ᾿)- ἕκαστον δὲ τῶν παθῶν τριβόλια εἴρηκεν, ἐπειδὴ τριττά ἐστιν, αὐτό τε καὶ τὸ ποιητικὸν καὶ τὸ ἐκ τούτων ἀποτέλεσμα. , τρίβος, “©a beaten track,” ‘‘a path” (Mt 38 αἰ, cf. Sir 25) occurs in CPR I. 4214 (ἀρούρας) δ ἐκ λιβὸς τρίβου, ““4 arourae to the west of the path.” See also the metrical inscr. of B.C. 145-116, Archiv i. p. 22174— καὶ col δ᾽ εὐοδίης τρίβον ὄλβιον εὔχομαι εἶναι, πρός γ᾽ ἔτι καὶ τέκνοις σοῖσι φιλοφροσύνοις. For the verb τρίβω, see P Par 4955 (before B.c. 161) (= UPZ i. p. 309) ὅπως λαβὼν παρ᾽ ἐμοῦ ἐν Μέμφει σησάμου τέταρτον τρίψῃ μοι ἐν Μέμφει τρίμμα, P Oxy II. μεμυκότας τρίψας, ‘pound some closed calices of pomegranates” (Edd.), 74. IX. 1222” (iv/A.D.) δὸς tw ἀδελφῷ . τὸ ἅλας Td Gp<po>wvakoy Td TeTpI<p> voy kal TO ἄτριπτον, ‘give your brother the salt of ammonia, both the pounded and the unpounded” (Ed.), and P Flor III. 3789 (v/A-D.?) τὰ ἱμάτιά μοι érp(By. See also Herodas V. 62 τοῖς σφυροῖσι τρίβοντα, ‘“burnishing with your ancles 3 certain Achaean wares (a euphemism for ‘‘fetters”: sc. πέδας).
Liddell-Scott-Jones — Greek-English Lexicon
τρίβολος (tribolos) — thistle. τρίβολος [ῐ], ὁ, name of various prickly plants, __a water-chestnut, Trapa natans, τ. ἔνυδρος [Refs 4th c.BC+] __b caltrops, Tribulus terrestris, [Refs 5th c.BC+]; τ. περικαρπιάκανθος, χερσαῖος, [LXX+7th c.BC+] __c τ. φυλλάκανθος, thorny trefoil, Fagonia cretica, [Refs 4th c.BC+] __d τ. παραθαλάσσιος, prickly samphire, Echinophora spinosa, [Refs 5th c.BC+]
II. τρίβολοι, οἱ, a threshing-machine, a board with sharp stones fixed in the bottom, [LXX+3rd c.BC+]; τ. ξύλινος (in the section περὶ κάρρων) [Refs 1st c.AD+]
III. caltrop, i. e. a four-spiked implement thrown on the ground to lame the enemy's horses, [Refs 3rd c.BC+]
III. b τ. πηχῶν έ a larger contrivance for stopping boulders, etc., thrown down a slope, [Refs 2nd c.BC+]
III. c οἱ κατακρημνώμενοι τ. an instrument hung from the walls of a fortress as a defence against battering-rams, [Refs 3rd c.BC+]
III. d a kind of missile, τριβόλων σιδηρῶν σφενδονῆται [Refs 1st c.BC+]; οἱ τ. οἱ καιόμενοι a kind of incendiary missile, [Refs 3rd c.BC+]
IV. part of the bit of a bridle, [Refs 3rd c.BC+]
V. uncertain meaning in naval dockyard records, σίδηρος ἐκ τοῦ τ. [Refs]
VI. as adjective, three-tiered, πυρὰ πυργοειδὴς τ. [Refs 2nd c.AD+]