Meaning

noun a weathered and decomposed siliceous limestone; in powdered form it is used in polishing

noun the capital and chief port and largest city of Libya; in northwestern Libya on the Mediterranean Sea; founded by the Phoenicians in the 7th century BC

noun a port city and commercial center in northwestern Lebanon on the Mediterranean Sea

originBorrowed from Italian Tripoli, from Latin Tripolis, from Ancient Greek Τρίπολις (Trípolis), from τρι- (tri-, “three”) + πολις (polis, “city, city-state”). In reference to American cities, after US actions off Tripoli in Libya during the First Barbary War. Doublet of Tripolis, Tirebolu, and Tripura.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 3.0