trilogy

noun

tril·​o·​gy ˈtri-lə-jē 

plural trilogies

: a series of three dramas or literary works or sometimes three musical compositions that are closely related and develop a single theme

Did you know?

Dozens of tragic trilogies were written for the Greek stage, though only one, Aeschylus's great Oresteia (consisting of Agamemnon, The Libation Bearers, *and *The Eumenides), has survived complete. Authors in later years have occasionally chosen to create trilogies to allow themselves to develop a highly complex story or cover a long span of time. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings wasn't actually intended as a trilogy, but since it was published in three volumes it's usually called one. George Lucas's three original Star Wars movies are an example of a film trilogy (which he followed many years later by another).

Examples of trilogy in a Sentence

the last book in the trilogy

Recent Examples on the Web

Fans of the bestseller The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue shouldn't sleep on the rest of Schwab's work, and the Shades of Magic trilogy is a great place to go next. —Lizz Schumer, PEOPLE, 20 Dec. 2025

Pierce Brown’s Red Rising series, a trilogy and soon to be completed tetralogy, is big in Abughazaleh’s personal canon. —James Folta, Literary Hub, 19 Dec. 2025

The Nile Hotel Incident ended up shooting in the Moroccan city of Casablanca, while subsequent films in the trilogy – Cairo Conspiracy (aka Boy From Heaven) and satirical political thriller Eagles of the Republic – filmed in Turkey. —Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 19 Dec. 2025

And of course, there was North Carolina, where The Hunger Games trilogy was filmed. —Rachel Chang, Travel + Leisure, 18 Dec. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Greek trilogia, from tri- + -logia -logy

First Known Use

circa 1661, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

trilogy

noun

tril·​o·​gy ˈtril-ə-jē 

plural trilogies

: a series of three literary, dramatic, or musical works that are closely related and develop a single theme