A Grammatical Dictionary of Botanical Latin

terni, ternae, terna (num. distr. pl. adj.A), gen. pl. ternum: three, three each, three together, three at a time; a set of three [ternus,-a,-um (adj.A) is ‘rare in the singular’ (Glare)]; cf. solitarius,-a,-um (adj.A), bini (2), trini (3), quaterni (4), quini (5), seni (6), septeni (7), octoni (8); used of nouns only used in the plural; see trini, trinae, trina; see -ni;

	Singular (none)	Plural
				
		m.	f.	n.
Nom.		terni	ternae	terna
Gen.		           	[ternum]	
Dat.			ternis	
Acc.		ternos	ternas	ternos
Abl.			ternis

Note: for the genitive plural see bini, binae, bina.

- capitula solitaria vel aggregata bina, terna vel quaterna, capitula (pl.n.II) solitary or aggregated paired, three or four.

- folia alterna, 4-terna ex eadem gemma, pinnata (Swartz), leaves alternate, in four sets of three from the same bud, pinnate

- sepala petalaque terna, quina vel sena, sepals and petals three, five or six.

- filis geminis vel forsan ternis, with the filaments doubled or perhaps in threes.

- papillae ternae vel septenae ad latus inferius positae, papillae three or seven, positioned on the lower side.

- folia terna, leaves three together.

- ter terna, quae sunt novem, three times three, which are nine [neuter plurals].

- terni ter pilei, three times (the) three pilei (9 pilei).

- folia verticillata terna vel quaterna, leaves whorled three or four together. (Stearn).

- folia terna, in quoque verticillo duo longiora, unum brevius, leaves three together, in each whorl two longer, one shorter.

- cellulae binae ternaeque aggregatae, cells in groups of two and three.

- sepala petalaque terna, quaterna, vel quina, sepals and petals three, four, or five.

- foliis ternis, with leaves three together.

- Sphaerostema genus ad species Asiaticas constitutum differre dicitur sepalis petalisque ordine ternario nec quinario dispositis. Sepala tamen in omnibus gradatim in petala mutata sunt et in speciebus Asiaticis uti in Americanis, aequo fere jure quina v. terna dicuntur (B&H), the genus Sphaerostema [arranged with regard to the Asiatic species] is said to differ by the sepals and petals arranged in a triple order [i.e. in groups of three] not quintuple [i.e. in groups of five]. In all of them, the sepals, however, are changed gradually into petals, and in Asiatic species as in American, equally almost they are authoritatively pronounced [i.e. dictated] to be by fives or by threes.

terni-: in L. comp., three- [> L. ternus,-a,-um (adj.A): three];

- terniceps,-cipitis, with three heads or glomerules; ternifolius, with three leaves or with the leaf consisting of three leaflets; terniseriatus, in three rows.