The synthesis of three novel nonlinear optical (NLO) chromophores with threefold symmetry, namely 1,3,5-tris(4-N,N-diethylaminophenyl)-2,4,6-tris(4-nitrophenyl)benzene (3), 1,3,5-tris(4-N,N-dihexylaminophenylbutadiynyl)-2,4,6-tris(4-nitrophenyl)benzene (13) and 1,3,5-tris(4-N,N-dihexylaminophenylethynyl)-2,4,6-tris(4-nitrophenylethynyl)benzene (4 b), is reported. We used the [Co(2)(CO)(8)]-catalysed trimerisation of 4-N,N-diethylamino-4'-nitrotolane (5) to prepare 3. The trimerisation experiment carried out with 1-(4-N,N-diethylaminophenyl)-6-(4-N,N-nitrophenyl)hexatriyne (6) and [Rh(PPh(3))(3)Cl] afforded 13. A stepwise approach was used to prepare 4 b. 1,3,5-Trichloro-2,4,6-triiodobenzene (8 b) was coupled with 4-nitrophenyl-acetylene (14) under Pd(0) catalysis to yield 1,3,5-trichloro-2,4,6-tris(4-nitrophenylethynyl)benzene (15). The coupling reaction of 15 with 4-N,N-dihexylaminophenylethynyltributylstannane (21) led to 4 b. X-ray investigations on 3, 4 b and 13 confirmed the structural assignments and revealed that the peripheral aryl rings in 4 b are less twisted around the connecting bonds than in 3 and 13. A large second-order polarisability (beta) of 4 b relative to 3 and 13 was determined by hyper-Rayleigh scattering (HRS). Compound 4 b represents an NLO chromophore with second-order polarisabily among the highest obtained so far for two-dimensional nondipolar NLO chromophores.