third

adjective

\ˈthərd

Definition of third

(Entry 1 of 2)

1a : being next after the second in place or time the third taxi in line

b : ranking next after the second of a grade or degree in authority or precedence served as third mate

c : being the forward speed or gear next higher than second especially in a motor vehicle

2a : being one of three equal parts into which something is divisible a third share of the money

b : being the last in each group of three in a series take out every third card

third

noun

Definition of third (Entry 2 of 2)

1a : one that is number three in a series — see Table of Numbers

b : one that is next after second in rank, position, authority, or precedence the third in line

2 : one of three equal parts of something a third of the pie

3 : third base

4 : the third forward gear or speed especially of a motor vehicle

5a : the musical interval embracing three diatonic degrees

b : a tone at this interval specifically : mediant

c : the harmonic combination of two tones a third apart

6 thirds plural : merchandise whose quality falls below the manufacturer's standard for seconds

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Examples of third in a Sentence

Adjective

We sat in the third row. the third house on the left C is the third letter in the alphabet. That's the third time I've seen him today. The office is on the third floor. Do you have a third choice? a third share in the profits a third pound of cheese

Noun

The win was his third of the year. a third of the pie Rent costs two-thirds of my paycheck. She divided the cookie into thirds.

Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective

Accidents fell by more than a third, according to Waze. — Michael Laris, Washington Post, "Federal researchers are using data from Waze and Maryland to try to predict road dangers," 7 July 2018 An out later, Votto singled, sending Winker to third. — John Fay, Cincinnati.com, "Castillo collapses in the fifth as Cincinnati Reds fall to Padres 6-3 to end trip 3-6," 3 June 2018 On Maile’s passed ball, Devers to third, E.Núñez to second. — BostonGlobe.com, "MLB boxscore: Red Sox 8, Blue Jays 3," 28 May 2018 Mansfield Lake Ridge won the girls 5A team title with 88 points, McKinney North second (78) and Frisco Heritage third (46). — Alvaro Montaño, Houston Chronicle, "Northwest Houston athletes medal at state meet; Klein Collins boys place third," 16 May 2018 After pinch hitter Wilmer Difo executed a perfect sacrifice bunt to push Taylor to third, Bradley inexplicably got charged with a balk while facing Andrew Stevenson. — Bob Mcmanaman, azcentral, "Archie Bradley's balk spoils a do-everything night by Zack Greinke as Diamondbacks lose," 10 May 2018 Finally, money used to provide defense lawyers for death penalty cases make be cut by as much as a third, according to the public defenders opposing the bill. — Julia O'donoghue, NOLA.com, "Louisiana efforts to free wrongfully convicted may lose money under House bill," 5 Apr. 2018 Aided by a timely five-point run by two bench players the Fever surged to a 23-12 third quarter that cut the lead to six, 58-52. — Jordan Guskey, Indianapolis Star, "Indiana Fever nearly overcome 20-point deficit but lose in overtime," 2 June 2018 The cost of providing the training, closing the stores and any loss of sales due to boycotting customers won’t show up until the fiscal third quarter when William Blair estimates up to a halfpenny penalty to earnings per share. — Julie Jargon, WSJ, "Starbucks Corp. Earnings -- What to Watch," 25 Apr. 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

Last season, English players accounted for less than one third of the total minutes played in the Premier League. — Jonathan Clegg, WSJ, "How England Rewired Its Soccer DNA," 10 July 2018 The Senate could expel him with a two-thirds majority vote. — Patrick Danner, San Antonio Express-News, "Convicted state Sen. Uresti surrenders law license," 13 Apr. 2018 The measure - which needed a two thirds majority to pass the House - lost in a 233 to 184 vote. — Sabrina Eaton, cleveland.com, "House of Representatives fails to pass balanced budget amendment to the Constitution," 12 Apr. 2018 Oscar winner and one third of the greatest celeb group chat ever Brie Larson has some exciting news to share. — Christopher Rosa, Glamour, "Brie Larson Is Rightfully Stoked She Can Do 5 Whole Pull-Ups," 27 Mar. 2018 The army spokesman, Major General Asif Ghafoor, said the request for 371,388 troops — nearly a third of the total armed forces — came from the country’s elections oversight body to ensure order during the vote. — Munir Ahmed, BostonGlobe.com, "Pakistan army to deploy 371,388 troops for July 25 elections," 11 July 2018 Offset is one third of the band Migos, whose most recent albums were called Culture and Culture II. — Kathryn Lindsay, refinery29.com, "All About The Kulture: The Story Behind Cardi B's Daughter's Name," 11 July 2018 If ever fully achieved, the partnership would also include the 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations as well as South Korea, Australia and New Zealand, and cover one third of the world’s economy and almost half its population. — Yuko Takeo, Bloomberg.com, "World's Biggest Trading Bloc a Step Closer After Tokyo Meeting," 1 July 2018 Globally, one third of all food produced – worth nearly $1 trillion – is thrown away every year, according to the United Nations's Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). — Umberto Bacchi, The Christian Science Monitor, "British chefs cook up food waste solutions," 22 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'third.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.