- triage (n.)
- 1727, "action of assorting according to quality," from French triage "a picking out, sorting," from Old French trier "to pick, cull" (see try). There seems to be some influence from or convergence with Latin tria "three" (e.g. triage for "coffee beans of the third or lowest quality"). In World War I, adopted for the sorting of wounded soldiers into three groups according to the severity of their injuries.