fo·li·ate (fō'lē-ĭt, -āt')
adj.

1. Of or relating to leaves.
2. Shaped like a leaf.
3. Geology. Foliated.

v., -at·ed, -at·ing, -ates. (-āt')

v.tr.

1. To hammer or cut (metal) into thin leaf or foil.
2. 1. To coat (glass, for example) with metal foil.
   2. To furnish or adorn with metal foil.
3. To separate into thin layers or laminae.
4. To decorate with foliage or foils: an arch that is foliated in the Gothic style.
5. To number the leaves of (a manuscript, for example).

v.intr.

1. To produce foliage.
2. To split into thin leaflike layers or folia.

[Latin foliātus, bearing foliage, from folium, leaf. See folium.]

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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

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